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MEMOIRS 



MRS. ELIZABETH MORTIMER 



SELECTIONS FROM HER CORRESPONDENCE. 
BY AGNES BULMER, 

AUTHOR OF "MESSIAH'S KINGDOM," &C. 



We gather up, with pious care, 

What happy saints hare left behind ; 
Their writings in our memory bear, 

Their sayings on our faithful mind ; 
Their works, winch traced them to the skies, 

As patterns to ourselves we take ; 
And dearly love and highly prize 

The mantle, for the wearer's sake. 

C. Wesley. 



NEW-YORK, 

PUBLISHED BY T. MASON AND G. LANE, 

For the Methodist Episcopal Church at the Conference 
Office, 200 Mulberry-street. 

/. Collord, Printer. 

1836. 



ST?17A5 



lXk Exchange 
Drew Theolog. Sam* 

22 Je»9W 



DEDICATION. 



To Mrs. Mary Holland, and Mrs. Eli- 
zabeth Reynolds ; with earnest prayer, that 
in themselves and their families may be perpe- 
tuated that piety and goodness which rendered 
their beloved, revered, and honoured parent a 
blessing to her connections, as well as an 
ornament to society ; this memorial is in- 
scribed by their affectionate and faithful friend, 

The Author. 

London, November, 1835. 



CONTENTS. 



Introduction. — Truth in morals and religion, as in 
physical science, to be tested by experiment — Benefit 
of such investigations — Christianity a Divine provision 
for the recovery of man from the consequences of the 
fall — Its efficiency exhibited in the subject of this me- 
moir — Methodism — Its character and results. Page 9 

CHAPTER I. 

Different species of biography — Its object in the 
present instance — Annals of Mrs. Mortimer's (then 
Miss Ritchie's) early life — Her parents — First religious 
impressions — Removal from the parental roof — Attach- 
ment to the world — Return home — Conviction of her 
guilt and danger as a sinner — Prospects of earthly ad- 
vantage relinquished upon conscientious grounds — - 
Decision in her Christian course — Obtains the blessings 
of experimental piety — Her journal — Extracts from it 
— Intercourse and correspondence with the Rev. John 
Wesley, 23 

CHAPTER II. 

Miss Ritchie's sense of responsibility for entrusted 
talents — Her appointment to be the leader of a class— 
The nature and duties of that office — Her peculiar fit- 
ness for it — Farther extracts from her journal — Pro- 
gress in Divine knowledge and grace — Increasing in- 
timacy with Mr. Wesley — Takes occasional journeys 
with him to the adjacent parts of Yorkshire — Extracts 
from Mr. W.'s letters — Letter from Miss R. to a friend 
lately married — Her declining health — Sympathy of 
kindred spirits — Her increasing illness — Letter, on th© 



6 CONTENTS. 

subject, to Mr. Wesley — His visits to Otley — Notices 
of them in his journals — Farther correspondence — Un- 
expected restoration to health — Domestic trials — Mar- 
riage of Mr. Benson — Death of Mr. Ritchie — Letters 
from Lady Maxwell and Miss Morgan — Visit to Bristol 
Hotwells, 59 

CHAPTER III. 

Miss Ritchie's entrance on a more public sphere of 
life — Travels for purposes of spiritual usefulness — Let- 
ter to Mr. Wesley — Extracts from his replies — Inti- 
macy with Mr. and Mrs. Fletcher — Description of their 
marriage — Mr. Fletcher's decease — Letter from the 
Rev. Charles Wesley to Mrs. Fletcher — Hymn — From 
the same to Mr. Fletcher — Visits Madeley with Mr. 
Wesley — Offer of marriage from a gentleman she had 
seen at Birmingham — Accepts an invitation to Dublin 
— Returns to Madeley, and is afflicted with severe ill- 
ness — Letter to Mr. Wesley — Her course of Christian 
activity a peculiar one — A special instrumentality 
prepared by Divine Providence to engage more general 
attention to the truth — Letter to Mr. Wesley — Miss 
Ritchie visits the metropolis, Newcastle, &c. — Letters 

to Mrs. T n — Returns to London — Accepts Mr. 

Wesley's invitation to reside at the Chapel-house — 
His last sickness and death — Letter from Lady Max- 
well — Death of Mrs. Hall — Miss R. leaves London for 
Madeley — Extracts from her journal — Its close, . 93 

CHAPTER IV. 

Extracts of letters from Miss March — Letters from 

Miss Ritchie to Miss K. and Miss T n— Passes 

much of her time with afflicted friends at Bristol — 
Letters to Mrs. T *n — Extracts from the corres- 
pondence of Lady Mary Fitzgerald — Mrs. T n's 

last illness and death — Letters to two friends recently 
married — Letters from Lady Maxwell and Lady Mary 
Fitzgerald — Holy Scripture the infallible test of re- 
ligious experience — Letter from Mrs. Bates, on the 
subject of domestic discipline, . . . 144 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER V. 



Miss Ritchie's marriage — Exemplary wisdom, pru- 
dence, and fidelity, exhibited in the discharge of new 
responsibilities — Salutary influence of her counsels and 
example — Occasional memoranda, written by herself 
— Her visit to Yorkshire — Affliction through disease 
in the eye — Thankfulness for domestic blessings — 
Deaths of Mrs. Crosby and Lady Maxwell — Of her 
youngest son — Of Lady Mary Fitzgerald — Letters from 
John Pearson, Esq., and from Mrs. Bates— Important 
extract of a letter from Miss Wesley — Observations on 
public amusements — Note, in reference to the Rev. 
Charles Wesley — Letters from Mrs. Mortimer to Mrs. 
J., and to Mrs. Holland, after her marriage — Letter 
from Mrs. D. Whitmore — From Mrs. Mortimer to 
Mrs. Holland on occasion of the death of R. C. Brack- 
en bury, Esq. — Death of Mr. Mortimer — Letters on 
the subject from Mr. Pearson, Mrs. Bates, and Mrs. 
D. Whitmore — Death of Mrs. Mortimer's nephew, 
Joseph Ritchie, Esq. — Lines written by him on leaving 
England for Africa — Letters from a clergyman and 
from Mrs. D. Whitmore — Letters from Mrs. Mortimer 
to Mrs. Holland, to Mrs. J„ and to a friend under be- 
reavement — Her last visit to Clifton, and to Raithby 
— Her last letter, ...... 181 

CHAPTER VI. 

The transitory character of human life — Its pensive 
impression counteracted by the assurance of a future 
immortality — The old age of a Christian honourable 
and happy — Mrs. Mortimer's last sickness — Her con- 
versations with her friends during her affliction — Her 
eminently peaceful death — Interment and funeral ser- 
mon — Sketch of Mrs. Mortimer in old age, by Mrs. D. 
Whitmore — Summary of her Christian character — Con- 
cluding observations — Anticipation of reunion with 
departed friends — The Beatific Vision. . . 285 



INTRODUCTION. 



In physical science general principles can be 
established only by accumulated facts. In the 
moral world the same procedure is equally es- 
sential and important. Truth refuses not the 
testimony of experience, but emits a splendour, 
and exerts an energy, proportioned to the can- 
dour, care, and diligence with which its evi- 
dences are examined. But if the investiga- 
tions of science require that accuracy and 
attention, which nothing but a laudable curi- 
osity, excited by deep interest in its subjects, 
can induce ; how much more imperative is the 
demand for calm and discriminating observa- 
tion, in the more difficult analysis of mind ! 
The heart with its affections, the will, the con- 
science, with the various impulses which ope- 
rate by turns on each, and, according to their 
powers and nature, determine not merely the 
intellectual, but also the moral, constitution ; 
— these require the cautious, prayerful, self- 
observant vigilance of the discerning Christian, 
in order to his adequate attainment of that 
most important branch of knowledge, an ac- 



1 INTRODUCTION. 

quaintance with himself. Trained by these 
exercises to habits of attention, he is prepared 
to reap advantage, not only from his own 
experience, but from that of others ; and thus 
accumulates a treasure of Divine and human 
wisdom, to which, amidst the strange vicissi- 
tudes of life's eventful journey, he finds innu- 
merable occasions to recur. 

To frivolous and thoughtless spirits, who love 
to flatter on the wing of dissipation, such pur- 
suits may be distasteful : yet can any subject 
more seasonably, profitably, or delightfully 
exercise the human faculties, than the moral 
constitution of man? Acquaintance with the 
circumstances of a being in its origin so high, 
by its transgression so degraded, subjected to 
influences powerful and multifarious from with- 
in and from without, must, in the estimation of 
true wisdom, be regarded as an attainment of 
the highest order, whether viewed in reference 
to the present w T orld, or to the world to come. 

Creation, in its descending scale, exhibits 
the perfections of the Deity, as he left them 
gloriously inscribed on all his works. In the 
human spirit, the reverse of this is the affecting 
truth. Man, therefore, must be regarded under 
those aspects which explain, in reference to his 
circumstances, what would otherwise appear 



INTRODUCTION. 11 

anomalous amidst the works of the Creator. 
Although occupying the loftiest pinnacle of 
terrestrial excellence, yet man as fallen is now 
unhappily the only type under wiiich the spe- 
cies can be contemplated. His tastes and 
habits indicate the present weakness and per- 
version of his faculties. Although in search of 
happiness, he mistakes his aim ; his moral na- 
ture is neglected ; his responsibilities are for- 
gotten ; he sustains, in dull vacuity, a tedious 
and monotonous existence ; or, borne by the 
uncertain and impetuous gales of passion upon 
the rocks and quicksands that infest the treach- 
erous sea of life, he is alike deluded, desolate, 
and wretched, — the sport of circumstances, and 
the source of misery to others and himself. 

But to this his state of helplessness, distress, 
and degradation, is he hopelessly and irretriev 
ably condemned ? The glorious Gospel of the 
Son of God here, in its majesty of mercy, 
announces an oracular reply. A remedial pro- 
cess has been divinely instituted for the pardon 
of transgression, for the renovation of man's 
moral nature, for his reinstatement in the favour 
and the family of God, and for the recovery of 
his title to immortal life, and to the felicities 
of an eternal heaven. But is the remedy ef- 
ficient ? Does moral health, with its concomi- 



12 INTRODUCTION. 

tants, peace, purity, and power, evince its effi- 
cacy when applied to the disorders of the soul ? 
The Christian, who has yielded up his spirit to 
the hallowing influences of religion, is here 
entitled to reply. Facts, in cumulative and 
indubitable evidence, attest its vital and resto- 
ring energy, when faithfully and perseveringly 
applied ; and, as the philosophical experimenter 
derives new pleasure from every fresh confir- 
mation of -the principles he seeks to ascertain ; 
so the believer in the Gospel, with a satisfac- 
tion as transcendant as the occasion of it ex- 
ceeds all other grounds of joy, felicitates himself 
on the increased assurance of its truth and 
power, arising from each added instance of its 
saving and transforming operation on the hu- 
man soul. 

In this view, Christian biography is a trea- 
sure of no ordinary value ; it applies the proper 
test to principles ; and calls forth experience to 
vouch for truth. Nor in this age of infidelity 
is such a voucher to be lightly estimated. 
Cold and scornful, on the lip of skepticism, 
hangs the taunt of the reviler : he impugns 
Christianity, and affronts its majesty, by daring 
to degrade it to a level with his own cheerless, 
powerless, heartless unbelief. But from whom 
receives he license thus boldly to arraign the 



i 



INTRODUCTION. 13 

wisdom, and the goodness, of high Heaven? 
Not from those who, in humility and faith, have 
thankfully embraced' the boon of mercy ; but 
from men who have assumed its title merely, 
and adopted its profession from no other mo- 
tives than those of custom or convenience ; 
beneath its garb but ill concealing worldly- 
mindedness, indifference, and too often flagrant 
and revolting vice ; — men who have never 
sought acquaintance with its holy principles, 
or proved its power to influence the under- 
standing and the heart. Human crime, and 
indolence, and folly have obstructed, or neg- 
lected to promote, the more diffusive applica- 
tion of a system bearing in its whole economy 
the most sublime and pure impressions of the 
character of Him in whose perfections it ori- 
ginated ; yet, in examples, multiplied beyond 
the power of human calculation, has been 
evinced its glorious and complete efficiency to 
answer every purpose of its institution, and to 
prove that, were its promulgation and accept- 
ance universal, it would ensure the renovation 
and salvation of the world. 

The relevancy of these observations to the 
present subject, it will not be difficult to show. 
They were suggested by reflection on the uni- 
form and consistent beauty of a character. 



14 INTRODUCTION. 

which, without those distinctions that command 
the admiration of the world, without the fasci- 
nations of rank, wealth, or genius, yet so im- 
proved the competent endowments of nature, as 
to acquire considerable mental elevation, to 
secure extensive influence, and to fill with mild 
and genial light a sphere of usefulness, benevo- 
lence, and duty, for the space of fourscore 
years. The transition of the mind is rapid 
from effects to causes. In the present instance 
there is nothing dubious : one word explains 
the whole : it was religion, imbibed in health- 
ful freshness from its pure and vital source. It 
was Christianity, that, in early life, moulded 
the pliant faculties into its sweet and heavenly 
form ; that took possession of the mind, and 
stamped it with the image of true wisdom ; 
that taught the young affections to expand in 
earnest aspirations after the highest excellence ; 
and threw the shadow of its glory round its 
youthful votary, to shield her from the evil in- 
fluences of a dangerous and corrupting world. 
From such premises the inference is easy 
and legitimate. A system that thus rectifies, 
adorns, and raises human nature, must proceed 
from Heaven ; and, as an emanation of Divi- 
nity, demands from men profound consideration 
of its claims, as well as prompt acceptance of 



INTRODUCTION. 15 

its benefits, and perfect subjugation to its laws. 
In grace, as in nature, tbe final purposes of God 
must be contemplated, in order to the full de- 
velopement of their magnificence, and to the 
display of that eternal wisdom, power and good- 
ness, which are the origin and end of each. 

But before entering on the details of the sub- 
ject, it may be desirable to notice in what de- 
partment of the school of Christ the character 
to be brought forward received that training 
under which she made so great proficiency, as 
to entitle her to be exhibited as an example to 
the Christian Church : and if the spirit of a 
pure and universal piety, pervading the whole 
heart and life, allows her claim to be adduced 
as a bright specimen of the efficiency of evan- 
gelical religion, must not candour also admit, 
that that species of Christianity, whose type 
she received, and which the world has chosen 
to designate by the name of " Methodism," con- 
tains within its system those principles of light 
and energy, which merit nobler epithets than 
those which generally assail it, from a preju- 
diced and undiscerning world ? 

Neither to the philosopher, nor the philan- 
thropist, can this subject be a matter of indif- 
ference, or of cold speculation. A machinery 
of so much moral power as that which, at the 



16 INTRODUCTION. 

commencement of the last century, was put in 
motion, under special instrumentality, by the 
revival of religion which then took place, and 
which still continues to propel its influence 
through wider and still widening circles, can- 
not but invite consideration, and excite much 
interest in reflecting minds. Such, accustom- 
ed to connect the links that form the chain of 
providence, will trace the steps of prescient 
mercy, preparing, by a more extended and ef- 
fective Christianity, a barrier against the influx 
of those dark and dangerous principles which, 
in more recent times, have poured their poison- 
ous tide, with an impetuous violence, through 
almost every quarter of the globe. Infidelity 
and insubordination have daringly unfurled the 
banner of defiance against Divine and human 
government. The standard has been grasped 
with desperate energy ; and had the counter- 
action of religious principle been less effective, 
still more fatal would have been the consequen- 
ces to the general interests of mankind. By 
the arrangements of a gracious Providence, a 
system of instruction was prepared and orga- 
nized, peculiarly adapted to that class of society 
against which infidelity, and its attendant evils, 
forsaking the misty regions of philosophical 
speculation, now insidiously direct their aim. 



INTRODUCTION. 17 

It has justly passed into an aphorism, that 
" whatever is novel in religion must necessarily 
be false." Methodism had no novelty to pre- 
sent to the world. The doctrines it propound- 
ed were the great and leading principles of 
evangelical truth, laid down in the Scriptures, 
and contained, not only in the formularies of 
the Universal Church, but also in those of the 
Church of England, of whose communion its 
distinguished founder, the Rev. John Wesley, 
was an attached and a conscientious member. 
It was in spirit, rather than in substance, that 
it differed from that established form of Chris- 
tianity from which it took its rise. 

Numerous causes had conspired to check 
the course of that revival of religion, which the 
era of the reformation had seen so gloriously 
commenced. Supineness and fanaticism con- 
tributed each its quota, to obscure the truth 
which then emerged from long-impending night. 
A new impulse had become essential ; the zeal 
that animated the reformers required rekind- 
ling from the altar-fires of Heaven. To accom- 
plish this important purpose, the providence of 
God selected its own agency ; and from the 
bosom of the Church of England raised up a 
class of men, whose holy zeal, and almost apos- 
tolic labours, roused the dormant and decaying 
2 



IB INTRODUCTION. 

spirit of religion, and proclaimed a vital and 
transforming Christianity in every quarter of 
the land. 

Not without sacrifice were these chosen in- 
struments to be honoured as the special mes- 
sengers of Heaven. Earnestness, which, in 
the pursuit of earthly objects, men esteem a 
virtue, when exercised on the important inte- 
rests of religion was construed to imply the ab- 
sence of sobriety of mind. Exclusion from 
their usual sphere of ministerial operation was 
the consequence of their irregular proceedings ; 
and censure, persecution, and reproach were 
plenteously awarded, in return for sufferings, 
labours, and privations of no ordinary kind. 
To these they cheerfully submitted, in the meek 
and animating spirit of that pure philanthropy 
which is originated only by the love of God. 

But while human judgments, urged by hu- 
man passions, misinterpreted the zeal and 
labours of these holy and devoted men, the seal 
of the Divine acceptance attested God's ap- 
proval of their work. Sinners listened to the 
voice that warned them of impending danger, 
and awoke from the deceitful dream of false 
security ; the Gospel, faithfully proclaimed, be- 
came the power of God to their salvation ; and 
its legitimate effects were manifested in a re- 



INTRODUCTION. 19 

novated spirit, and a holy life. Thus, by the 
enlightening and ameliorating influences of a 
spiritual and vigorous ministry, were thousands 
rescued from the toils of sin ; and on the sur- 
face of society, to a considerable extent, espe- 
cially upon those orders of it most accessible 
to danger from the peculiar spirit of the age, 
a healthful and restraining moral power was 
spread. 

But although Methodism has largely partici- 
pated in the glory of preaching the Gospel to 
the poor, yet has it numbered among its trophies 
some of the wisest and the best of men ; men 
whose understandings could be subjugated only 
by the force of truth, and who were alike by 
education and by constitution far removed from 
the unnatural fervours of a wild fanaticism, and 
from the enthusiastic vanity of expecting to 
attain an end without the use of means. By 
minds thus powerful and comprehensive has 
this revival been regarded as the work of God ; 
nor have they been ashamed of yielding up 
their spirits to its influence, or of being found 
co-operators in promoting its extension through 
the world. 

To the enlightened intellect, no line of con- 
duct appears so like fatuity, as that which 
slights concerns of everlasting moment, or turns 



20 INTRODUCTION. 

with proud contempt from the realities of the 
eternal world. A form of Christianity, there- 
fore, whose chief speciality was, that it was in 
earnest, would have little to conflict with in 
such minds. Among the friends and adherents 
of the Wesleys, many such characters were 
found ; and if from all classes of society may 
be largely selected those who have not only 
given their sanction to the economy established 
by these eminent men, but who have themselves 
been formed by it to an elevation in piety and 
virtue to which they might not otherwise have 
attained, may not Methodism, like Christianity, 
appeal for judgment, from the prejudices and 
passions of men, to its results in the exaltation 
of the human character, and the general im- 
provement of society ? 

These observations, it is deemed proper here 
to make, in order that the position occupied by 
the early Methodists may be distinctly under- 
stood, and a full and just light thus cast upon 
the portrait which is now to fill the scene. 
Although these things, at a period compara- 
tively not far distant, were known familiarly, 
yet their contemporaries are now passed away. 
Events and personages sink rapidly into obli- 
vion ; and reminiscences that should be cher- 
ished, fade like evening shadows from the mind. 



INTRODUCTION. 21 

On the young the expectations of the Church 
repose.: by them, therefore, it is devoutly to be 
wished, that example in its forceful influence 
should be felt. That this influence may not, 
in the present instance, be enfeebled by un- 
founded and fastidious prejudice ; that the can- 
did and inquiring may be prompted to investi- 
gate a subject which now forms material for 
historic record ; and, especially, that the claims 
of personal religion may be seriously weighed 
and duly estimated : — these comprise the rea- 
sons that have induced the author to prefix 
this Introduction to the following work. 



MEMOIR 

OF 

MRS. ELIZABETH MORTIMER. 



CHAPTER I. 

" You will see what manner of persons the Spirit of 
God does form." — Venn. 

That biography which comprises incidents 
of multiform and stirring interest, is, undoubt- 
edly, to the majority of readers, most attractive; 
but this is seldom furnished in the course of 
ordinary life. There is, however, another, and 
perhaps a richer, source of pleasure and im- 
provement, to those who can dispense with 
objects so exciting, and retire from sensible and 
outward things to the interior chambers of the 
mind. To these it is a pleasant, and an in- 
structive, exercise, to learn the history of 
other minds, whether developed in the excur- 
sions of genius, the patient and laborious efforts 
of science, the sublime walks of philosophy, or 
the still higher regions of Divine truth. The 
memorials of intellect have an intrinsic value : 
light is propagated as from mirror to mirror, 
and its beams are rendered, not only more dif- 
fusive, but more intense. 



24 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

There is yet an inner shrine : it is the re- 
gion in which the immortal spirit holds con- 
verse with its Maker, and transacts the con- 
cerns of eternity. This is the sphere which is 
now chiefly to occupy attention ; though, while 
studying the principal subject, many interven- 
ing ones may be anticipated, which will at 
once illustrate and diversify the scene. 

To ascribe glory to her Saviour, and to 
promote the welfare of her species, were ob- 
jects of supreme desire to her, who now, fronj 
the retirement of domestic life, is summoned as 
a bright example of the power and excellence 
of Christian piety. To a character so humble,, 
and so free from ostentation, publicity on lower 
grounds would have been irksome and annoy- 
ing ; but for such ends, she scrupled not, through 
life, to make innumerable sacrifices of personal 
and private feeling ; nor would she, from the 
tomb, refuse to reiterate, with more impressive 
emphasis than ever, those holy, useful, and im- 
portant lessons which, while on earth, by pre- 
cept and example she sedulously strove to* 
teach. 

From the pen of Mrs. Mortimer herself 
will be derived the annals of her early life* 
This document was, at the request of her late 
husband. H. W. Mortimer, Esq., prefixed to a 
journal, in whieh, for more than twenty years, 
she registered, not only the occurrences of life, 
but more particularly such spiritual perceptions^ 
and trains of thought and feeling, as in suc- 
cession exercised her heart and mind. She 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 25 

ran her course with circumspection and inter- 
nal vigilance ; and the result was. a consistent 
exhibition of the graces and the virtues of the 
Christian life. 

" My father's name," says Mrs. Mortimer, 
" was John Ritchie. He was a native of Ed- 
inburgh ; and, in the reigns of George the Se- 
cond and George the Third, served many years 
as a surgeon in the navy. He was a sensible, 
amiable, well-informed man, fond of retirement, 
and had a great taste for the beauties of nature. 
He feared God, and in all things acted consci- 
entiously ; received the message of the Gospel 
with joy ; and welcomed its ministers tu the 
hospitalities of his house. A nautical life was 
not congenial to his feelings : as soon, there- 
fore, as he conveniently could, he sought for a 
quiet retreat in some retired spot. A kind Pro- 
vidence directed his steps to a pleasant village 
in the lovely valley of Wharfdale. Here he 
pitched his tent, and shortly afterward mar- 
ried my mother, Beatrice Robinson, of Bram- 
hope. After the birth of my brother, my 
parents removed to Otley ; where, on Febru- 
ary the 2d, 1754, it pleased God to bring me 
into this land of shadows. My early days 
were passed in peace and pleasure. I was 
naturally cheerful; my chief trouble was the 
pain I felt when I had grieved my relatives or 
friends. The restraints of a strictly religious 
education fixed around my young mind bounds 
which were never wholly broken through. 
From a child, I was taught to believe that 



xf! 



20 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

God hears and answers prayer ; and was soon 
convinced, that it was the best means of pre- 
venting evil, and of obtaining good. When 
prayer was neglected, every thing went wrong. 
Thoughts of the day of judgment, and a con- 
viction that I was not prepared to meet it, often 
made me serious, when only eight years old. 
But these impressions were transient ; I knew 
nothing of the depravity of my own heart ; and 
they were easily effaced by the increasing vo- 
latility of youth. 

" When about twelve years of age, a lady in 
our neighbourhood (Mrs. H.) requested my fa- 
ther to bring me with him to pay her a visit. 
She was the last sister of an old family which 
my father had professionally attended ; and 

lived in the family mansion at L s This 

lady grew so fond of me, that at length she 
would not let me return home. I had here ma- 
ny things to bear that were not pleasant ; but 
I soon saw, that if I could but endure the strict 
discipline to which I was subjected, it would 
prove of excellent use. This helped me to bear 
a kind of treatment for which in subsequent 
life I have been truly thankful. My Lord pre- 
pared me here for many things through which 
I have since been called to pass. I was intro- 
duced into company and habits very different 
from those to which I had been used at home. 
The former flattered my vanity, and made me 
more willingly submit to the restraints imposed 
upon me. Mrs. H. w r as a strict moralist, but 
at that time, I fear, a stranger to the doctrines 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 27 

of the Gospel, and very much prejudiced against 
the Methodists ; against whom she also strongly 
endeavoured to prejudice me. In process of 
time she succeeded ; and I was often really 
ashamed to own that my parents attended their 
ministry. Indeed, I went so far as to use my 
endeavours to prevent them ; often repeating 
the tales I had heard, and wishing, at least, 
that they would not receive Mr. Wesley into 
their house ; but all I could say had no effect : 
they tried to remove my objections ; but, who 
are so blind as those who will not see ? I pur- 
sued my follies, and cared not how little I was 
at home ; but in the midst of all this I was un- 
happy. Sometimes I wished for greater liberty 
to indulge myself in all the follies of life, and 
thought, < Surely if I could be gratified in this 
respect, 1 should find the rest I am so fruitlessly 
pursuing.' " 

This sketch exhibits the writer's character- 
istic ingenuousness and simplicity ; but a crisis 
was at hand, on whose issue hung the form 
and tenor of her future life, — a period of deci- 
sion which was to fix her choice on God, or 
yield her up to the illusions of a fascinating 
and deceitful world. Too often has the youth- 
ful subject of Divine grace been induced to 
make a false and fatal compromise with con- 
science ; and under such circumstances to 
sacrifice the friendship of Heaven, and the in- 
terests of eternity, in order to run in giddy 
chase after those vanities which, like the rain- 
bow on the passing cloud, continually elude their 



28 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

grasp. Such, in the present instance, most 
happily was not the case. 

Mrs. Mortimer proceeds to state, that family 
arrangements occasioned the removal of her 
patroness, Mrs. H., to York, whither she ac- 
companied her. " And here," she says, " I had 
the opportunity of indulging myself, beyond 
what I could reasonably have expected, in all 
the vain amusements of the world. But still 
my poor mind, like Noah's dove, could find no 
rest. I strictly attended to religious duties, 
but was fond of plays, cards, and company. I 
compared myself with others, and drew con- 
clusions favorable to my own state ; for though 1 
did not make such high pretensions as many did, 
yet I thought myself a good Christian : and so 
effectually was my conscience at that time 
asleep, that though nothing but death separa- 
ted me from perdition, yet I was insensible ot 
my danger ; nay, more, so completely was I 
under self-deception, as to suppose myself rich 
in spiritual attainment, when at the same time 
I was a poor, deluded, miserable sinner, obnox- 
ious to the just displeasure of almighty God." 

But this darkness was shortly superseded by 
the true and heavenly light. That heart, 
whose expanding desires after happiness the 
world, specious and pretending as it was, could 
not satisfy, — that spirit which even in the for- 
malities of religion could find no repose, — was 
soon to meet its proper object, and taste a pure, 
substantial, permanent felicity in holy and de- 
lightful friendship with the only Source of good, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 29 

"In the year 1770," continues Mrs. Morti- 
mer, " my friend Mrs. H. took a journey to 
London. She said, were I to accompany her, 
it would introduce me more into life than would 
be proper at so early a period ; and that I 
should, therefore, visit my parents during her 
absence. This was a gracious providence for 
me. Mr. Wesley came to Otley, and I was 
pleased with him in company ; yet such were 
my prejudices at that time, that I would not go 
to hear him preach. The curate of Otley, the 
Rev. James Illingworth, was a spiritual man ; 
but although I had been accustomed to attend 
the services of the establishment both on Sun- 
days and on week days very regularly, yet, to 
my shame I must confess, I was an utter stran- 
ger to the blessed doctrines which its articles 
and homilies contain. Mr. Illingworth partic- 
ularly insisted on the natural depravity of man, 
on justification by faith only, the new birth, 
and the influences of the Holy Spirit. These 
subjects were new to me, and when I first 
heard him, he greatly attracted my attention ; 
but I heard for others, and often said to myself, 
* This is very necessary for persons that have 
been openly immoral ;' but I still remained ig- 
norant of my own deep interest in them, until 
it pleased the Holy Spirit to remove the veil 
from my heart." 

Peculiar circumstances at length induced 
the young inquirer to enter conscientiously 
into the examination of these momentous sub- 
jects ; and the result was, an assurance that 



30 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

they were divinely true, and infinitely impor- 
tant ; and that she had incurred an over- 
whelming load of guilt and condemnation in 
having suffered her attention to be so long di- 
verted from them, by those frivolous concerns 
which had hitherto engrossed her thoughts and 
time. The Holy Spirit powerfully impressed 
her mind with the conviction, that, in spite of 
her pretensions to religion, she yet knew noth- 
ing of that change of heart which is implied in 
those emphatic words of the Redeemer, " Ye 
must be born again." A view at the same time 
was given her of the spiritual character and 
obligation of the law of God, such as she had 
never had before. The denunciations of Scrip- 
ture against transgressors fell suddenly and 
powerfully upon her mind : " I stood," she 
says, " like a criminal arrested, tried, found 
guilty and condemned before the bar of God. 
Until that time, I had been without fear as to 
the safety of my spiritual state ; now, all the 
Divine threatenings against unbelievers stood 
in full force against me. I became dead to all 
my false hopes ; yet still cherished the idea, 
that I might possibly be saved as a sinner 
through the atonement of Christ. For some 
time I suffered exquisitely ; my mind dwelt 
upon little but the thunders from Mount Sinai ; 
I prayed much, but was afraid to open my mind 
to any one ; — first, lest it should be supposed 
I had been guilty of some heinous sin ; — 
and next, for fear I should be called a Metho- 
dist. I plainly saw, that if I pursued what 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 31 

now appeared to me to be real religion, I must 
give up the world, and become such a person 
as my friends, especially Mrs. H. and her con- 
nections, would utterly reject." 

Aware of the critical nature of her circum- 
stances, her embarrassment and distress became 
great. Decision either for God or the world 
could be delayed no longer; a choice must now 
be made either for time or for eternity. Those 
flattering views of temporal advantage which 
she had so fondly cherished, she must now re- 
linquish, and exchange the friendship of the 
world for the reproach of Christ. The strug- 
gle for a season was severe, but grace was 
given to make the sacrifice ; and shortly, in 
that real happiness which true religion can 
alone supply, she felt that she had received a 
rich equivalent for the surrender she had made. 

Her course was now comparatively unper- 
plexed. Freed from the entanglements and 
vacillations of divided purpose, she was pre- 
pared with concentrated diligence and earnest- 
ness to give her whole attention to those inte- 
rests, which in all their vast importance rose 
distinctly on her view. She records her feel- 
ings in the following words : — 

" From this time the light began to shine 
into my heart. I had a strong and constant 
hope, that God, who had disclosed to me my 
danger, and had also shown me that he had 
prepared a remedy, would give me faith to make 
me whole, that, by receiving Christ as my jus- 
tifying righteousness, rnv troubled conscience 



32 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

might obtain peace. This I now sought in all 
the means of grace. My tastes were changed : 
I had lost all relish for the gayeties of life ; 
worldly company was a burden to me ; and I 
no longer feared reproach. My one desire was 
to feel vital union with the sinner's Friend ; 
and, to obtain this, I felt it easy to surrender 
all beside. But how I was to ascertain my in- 
terest in the covenant blood, I could not tell. 
However, I could pray that he who had pro- 
mised < in no wise to cast out those who come 
unto him,' would help me to come in such a 
manner, as would terminate in that Divine 
assurance of acceptance, without which I felt 
I could not comfortably live. He answered my 
prayer in the following manner : On one occa- 
sion, my soul being greatly a thirst for God, I 
poured out my supplication before him, and he 
helped me to plead in a special manner the 
promises made to penitent sinners. I received 
Divine power to make them my own ; and felt 
assured that He who knew no sin was made a 
sin offering for me, that I ' might be made the 
righteousness of God in him.' From this happy 
moment, peace, love, and joy in the Holy Ghost, 
flowed into my soul. I supposed my toil was 
over ; but soon experience taught me, that my 
warfare was but just commenced. For some 
time I was all love, prayer, and praise ; but 
painful circumstances soon convinced me, that 
the propensity to evil had been only dormant in 
my heart : wrong tempers yet remained. I 
felt their sinfulness, and had recourse to prayer 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 33 

and penitent confession before God. Instruc- 
tion and encouragement were graciously vouch- 
safed ; and He who is rich in mercy so visited 
me, that by the Spirit of adoption I was again 
enabled to call him ' my Father and my God.' 
I was now happy, but felt the need of a more 
full salvation, and was resolved to seek it ear- 
nestly. 

" As a help to my spiritual progress, I 
thought I would regularly note down what 
passed in my mind, relative to this important 
subject; and on July 3d, 1771, began to exe- 
cute my purpose. I wrote merely for private 
use, and found it led me to a more close inspec- 
tion of my own heart. Often has my diary 
afforded me cause for thankfulness, but more 
frequently for humiliation. Goodness and mercy 
have followed me all my days, but I have been 
unworthy and unfruitful. My Lord has dealt, 
and still deals, with me according to his abun- 
dant mercy. T owe all my blessings to the 
meritorious passion of my Saviour, Christ." 

The preceding narrative, at a long subsequent 
period, was prefixed to the diary here referred 
to ; which must now afford the clue to her pro- 
gress through a long and valuable portion of life. 

When Miss Ritchie commenced her journal, 
she was in her eighteenth year, and had entered 
with decided purpose on a course of Christian 
piety. That disorder of the understanding and 
affections which is the sad result of sin, had 
been in a great measure corrected by the trans- 
forming energy of grace. Early rescued bv the 
3 



34 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

hand of mercy from the sphere of worldly influ- 
ence and example, her faculties in all their 
freshness were presented as a free-will offering 
at the shrine of her Redeemer^ to be employed 
according to his wilL The value of a course 
of piety commenced in early youth, eternity 
alone can fully show. Not only is it wise ? 
while young, to recognize the claims of Heaven* 
and yield obedience to them ; but it is incom- 
parably easier, also, than a later choice* In a 
more advanced period inveterate habits, false 
associations, and pernicious principles, exert 
their several forces to obstruct the power of 
truth ; and duties, cares, and trials multiply, 
which harass and perplex the spirit, and hedge 
up the path of life with thorns. To break 
through obstacles like these, requires no small 
degree of moral courage ; while friendships and 
connections formed on worldly grounds aug- 
ment the difficulty ; and endless vacillation is 
too frequently the sad result. 

Not such is the course of the unhesitating can- 
didate for immortality : his steps are strength- 
ened ; and increasing light and blessing mark 
his path. Holy principles, resorted to on all 
occasions, rule the understanding; subjugate 
the will and the affections ; and, originating 
holy habits, bring over to the side of virtue and 
religion one of the most powerful propensities 
in the moral constitution of man. 

Thus was Miss Ritchie prepared for the ca- 
reer of life. The foundation of her future ex- 
cellence was laid in deep as well as ear >y piety ; 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 35 

and being firmly based, the superstructure rose 
proportionably high. There was, in truth, a 
harmony of parts, a general symmetry, that 
struck the eye of the beholder, and produced 
impressions of serene and graceful beauty, hal- 
lowing and refreshing to the mind. 

Her journal opens with an ascription of 
praise to God for all his mercies, and indicates 
an humble, watchful spirit ; but being written 
not for public but for private benefit, it cannot 
often be transcribed at large. Various extracts 
will, however, show the progress of her mind 
in knowledge and experience, and prove that 
she was not content to taste alone the blessings 
of salvation, but was ever anxious to promote 
the good of others, and to lead them to desire 
that mercy which she knew to be as free for 
them as she had found it for herself. 

Humility, a deep sense of dependence upon 
Christ, and gratitude to him who had mani- 
fested so much love to her soul, mark the com- 
mencement of these records. On the 20th of 
July, 1771, she says, "My soul was humbled in 
the dust before God while engaged in prayer. 
At present a deep sense of my unworthiness 
rests upon me. Lord, save me every moment, 
or I shall perish ! Increase my faith, and give 
me power over my enemies ! What has Jesus 
purchased for a fallen race? Life, light, and 
immortality ! He has called me out of darkness 
into his marvellous light, and is at this moment 
precious to my soul. Lord, sanctify me through- 
out body, soul, and spirit, that I may perfectly 



36 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy 
name!" 

How early she endeavoured to improve the 
grace received, will appear by what follows: 
"I went to B., and found liberty to speak on 
sacred subjects ; and, as God enabled me, I 
declared the truths belonging to salvation to 
Mr. S.'s family. My mind was pained to see 
such sensible people so entirely ignorant of the 
things that make for their peace. God grant 
that they may know the day of their visitation, 
lest these things should be hidden from their 
eyes ! 

" I visited my brother in his affliction, and 
found much liberty in praying with and for him. 
To-day I have been at L., but had no opportu- 
nity of speaking for God : I could say but a few 
words, which were forced, and no notice taken 
of them. But I did not forget to pray, * Lord, 
turn their hearts !' " 

While her sympathies were thus excited in 
behalf of her friends, opportunities of usefulness 
were preparing for her. A class of children 
was committed to her care ; and she was called 
occasionally to take part in acts of social wor- 
ship with her Christian friends. 

On another occasion, she says, " I have felt 
this day great thankfulness to God, for the 
change wrought in me by Divine grace. I have 
seen many pursuing death, in the error of those 
ways in which formerly I took as great delight 
as they. I well remember the time when I 
should have run with the foremost to these and 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 37 

similar diversions. What makes me now to differ, 
but grace? I feel no kind of desire after these 
things. They are mean and trifling, and unwor- 
thy the pursuit of a rational and immortal being. 
My God, let thy love ever be rrry delight !" 

It is worthy of remark, that she did not here 
start the inquiry, how far she might advance 
toward the precincts of danger, without positive 
transgression. Nor was she solicitous so far 
to w r iden the narrow path, as to admit of any 
doubtful accompaniments. Her heart was up- 
right, her conscience tender ; her feelings were 
alive to higher pleasures; and she courted no 
casuistry to convince her, that the friendship 
of the world is not enmity with God. Having 
tasted the living water in its crystal fresh- 
ness, she thirsted not for earth's less limpid 
streams. 

But though the vanities of life had ceased to 
interest, new sources of enjoyment were un- 
folded to her spirit in fellowship with God, and 
in acquiring more extended knowledge of those 
truths which sanctify and elevate the heart of 
man. The public means of grace she found 
subservient to this purpose ; and under sermons, 
as well as at the table of the Lord, expresses 
thankfulness for benefits received. " I fed," she 
says, " on Christ in my heart by faith, and an- 
ticipated with joy an eternal union with him. 5 ' 
Again : * I went to the house of God, in full 
expection of a blessing, and was not dis- 
appointed. A gracious sense of the Divine 
presence rested upon me. I was humbled un- 



Ob MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

der a view of the defilement of my nature ; yet 
felt myself entitled to lay claim to the promise 
made to those that mourn. A consciousness 
of my unworthiness rests upon me. I feel that 
by grace I am saved." 

Accustomed to ohserve the movements of her 
own heart, she felt that there was much within 
that needed the renewing operations of the 
Holy Spirit* This led her to pray earnestly 
for a more powerful work of grace ; for an en- 
tire deliverance from those roots of evil which, 
she was conscious, were not eradicated from 
her nature, and were, therefore, under circum- 
stances of temptation, prone to rise, although 
not suffered to prevail. On this subject she 
expresses a most lively feeling of anxiety. She 
felt a war within, and earnestly implored that 
she might gain the victory. 

" The corruptions of my heart," she says, 
" have only lain still, that they might rise with 
redoubled force. Satan has employed his whole 
artillery against me ; and I have been tempted 
to wander after creatures, to impatience, anger 
pride, and self-complacency. But I have been 
kept from outwardly yielding. The Lord knows 
my heart, and I can appeal to him that I sin- 
cerely desire to be delivered from all unholy 
tempers : they break my peace, and bring me 
into bondage. If I parley with my enemies, 
they prevail. I find I must fly to Christ, or 
perish : when I do so, I am delivered from all 
my anxious doubts and fears." 

On July 5th, 1772, Miss Ritchie continues, — 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER, 39 

*• Since I wrote last in my journal, I have been 
on the brink of eternity. 

* T!i? opening- hsavens around me shone, 
With beams of sacred bliss.' 

My hope was full of immortality, and my an- 
chor cast within the vail. I found the Lord's 
work was not finished, but knew he would per- 
fect what was lacking; and am now thankful 
that he has again blessed me with a measure 
of health. 

_ " Last Tuesday, that venerable servant of 
God, Mr. Wesley, came here. I had often 
wished to see him while I was ill, and now my 
desire has been kindly granted. * The lips of 
the righteous feed many.' He preached to 
large and attentive congregations, and I found 
myself much profited. He went to Parkgate 
on Thursday ; I accompanied him and Mrs. 
Wesley in the chaise ; and as we walked up 
the hill he discoursed with me on spiritual sub- 
jects. He was humble as a little child : and 
on my telling him that when I was ill I had a 
great desire to see him, yet was content under 
the privation, believing we should soon meet in 
heaven, he replied, * Well, God gives us to meet 
on earth, that we may meet in heaven.' I told 
him how often it had been said to me, ' You 
are too ardent to hold out long,' and that Satan 
had made this a subject of temptation : he said, 
* I have observed, that few who have set out in 
good earnest turn back; but of those who set 
out coldly, one out of five generally does. Be 
not discouraged therefore,' he added ; \ for there 



40 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

are more on your side than against you/ 
Under the sermon on Thursday evening I felt 
my ideas of holiness greatly enlarged. May 
the desires I now feel he strengthened, and my 
soul be watered with the dew of heaven ! Mr. 
Wesley afterwards gave me much counsel, en- 
treating me to be in earnest, and to persevere 
in prayer and the improvement of my time ; as 
.on the present moment hung the issue of my 
future course. He inquired what books I read ; 
recommended 'Young's Night Thoughts f and 
promised to give a list of such as he thought 
might be useful. I find I can be free and sim- 
ple with this great and good man. His affabi- 
lity removes all restraint. I have been greatly 
profited by his company, and at present feel a 
strong desire to devote myself, body, soul, and 
spirit, to the Lord." 

This appears to have been the commence- 
ment of that intercourse which afterwards ri- 
pened into so interesting and intimate a friend- 
ship. To her connection with Mr. Wesley, Miss 
Ritchie owed much of the celebrity of her early 
religious course ; it exerted a powerful influ- 
ence in the formation of h-^r character ; and 
she always justly ranked it among the highest 
and most valued blessings of her life. 

With the ingenuousness of an upright mind, 
she continues to record her numerous internal 
conflicts. "To-day," she says, "the flesh 
seemed to war against the spirit ; I felt an evil 
heart, which preferred the creatures to God; 
but, resorting to prayer, I was set free, and my 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 41 

affections fixed'on their proper object. Talking 
too much, even on the things, and with the 
people of God, has brought darkness on my 
mind. How much do I need watchfulness ! 
Through speaking unguardedly I have been 
brought into heaviness. I had no intention to 
deceive, and immediately acknowledged my 
mistake, both to God and man, and obtained 
forgiveness. For the future I will endeavour 
not to speak positively about any thing. Lord, 
help me to be watchful ! I desire to walk in 
the narrow path. 

"February 2d, 1773. — This day I enter on my 
twentieth year. How little of my time have I 
devoted to the service of the best of beings ! 
Even since I made a profession of religion, how 
many moments have I wasted ! How little pro- 
ficiency have I made in the Divine life ! I am 
not yet altogether spiritual ; but have great need 
of humiliation before God, on account of my non- 
improvement of his many mercies. May I now 
begin to live ! As I this day enter on another 
year of my natural life, let me begin my spirit- 
ual course afresh ! Saviour, let me die to sin ; 
seal my peace, and take up thy abode in my 
heart ! 

On the same occasion, in the following year, 
she adds, " I might, by this time, have been a 
tall cedar in Lebanon ; at present, I am but a 
dwarf. Yet, when I consider what I once 
was, I must acknowledge, that the Lord has 
wrought a great change in me. He gives me 
power to love him ; and, on examination, I 



42 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

think this power, daring the last year, has not 
been impaired, but increased. My desires are 
stronger after conformity to the Divine image; 
the old man is weakened, and sin, though not 
dead, does not reign in me. I have received 
help in the hour of trial ; and have been brought 
thus far by my heavenly Father. May my fu- 
ture life show forth his praise ! How needful 
is self-examination ! If I did not attend to 
this, I should soon lose ground. It is only by 
the light of the Spirit that I can discern my 
true state : I believe he will not suffer me to 
be deceived ; for I would be upright in heart 
before him, and such as he can approve. 

" April 4th. — I have made but little progress. 
The corruptions of my heart have been very 
lively. However, though my enemies have 
fought against me they have not prevailed. 
Needless cares have harassed and op'pressed 
me ; but Jesus is the sinner's friend. He saw 
the sorrows of my heart ; and as a calm after 
a tempest has been the quiet which his sooth- 
ing presence has diffused. Without God, what 
a wretched thing is life !" 

On this principle she proceeded, exercising 
a strict vigilance over herself in every thing, 
whether external or internal ; and bringing 
every temper, word, and work, to the test of 
that standard to which she strove to rise. 

A love of holiness, a constant and an intense 
desire to be conformed to the great pattern of 
perfection, is the characteristic principle of the 
regenerated mind. Sin, in its essence, as well 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 43 

as in its ramified developements, is viewed as 
the most heinous and offensive object ; and 
abhored as utterly repugnant to the will of the 
supreme Creator, and subversive of his moral 
government. To be freed from its defilement, 
as well as from its guilt and awful condemna- 
tion, is the object of the Christian's ceaseless 
prayer ; to which desire and duty he is urged 
both by the promises and the requirements of 
the word of God. To " be renewed in the 
spirit of the mind," Eph. iv, 23, 24; to "put 
on the new man, which, after God, is created 
in righteousness and true holiness," which is 
" renewed in knowledge, after the image of 
hiui that created him," Col. iii, 10 ; is the 
charge of the apostle to those who, by himself, 
had been taught the truth as it is in Jesus 
Christ. On these, and on innumerable cor- 
responding passages, are fixed the faith and 
hope of those more elevated spirits who, not 
satisfied with elementary principles, desire to 
follow on to the attainment of those higher 
privileges, whereby they may be fitted for more 
perfect fellowship with God on earth, and ren- 
dered fully meet for the inheritance of saints 
in heaven. 

Yet, while the hallowed soul rejoices to con- 
template the perfections of the Deity, and 
feels that to reflect his glory is its highest 
bliss and privilege ; its sense will be propor- 
tionably poignant of its own infirmity, and of 
the imperfection of its most devoted services. 
Hence, on the mediatorial work of the Re- 



44 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

deemer will rest its only hope for pardon and 
acceptance. Placed under a gracious dispensa- 
tion, through the sacrifice and intercession of 
the great High Priest, a constant application 
of the benefits of this mysterious scheme of 
mercy will be felt to be essential to its peace 
and purity, to what degree of holiness soever it 
may happily attain. 

Under a ministry which insisted largely on 
the fulness of the grace of Christ, and on the 
energy exerted by the Holy Spirit to subdue 
corruption, and to eradicate the seeds of evil 
from the heart of the believer, Miss Ritchie, 
habituated to self-examination, felt her own de- 
ficiencies; and^earnestly aspired to this more 
elevated state of grace. To the affecting ex- 
ercises of her mind on this important subject, 
her diary bears frequent witness. Having cho- 
sen Christ as her exclusive portion, she resolved 
to pray for the fulfilment of those promises 
which, through his name, insure the highest 
blessings to the humble and believing heart ; 
and, by the operation of the Holy Spirit, she 
was, through faith, admitted to a more enlarged 
acquaintance with that perfect law of liberty, 
which, while it annihilates the state of servile 
bondage, produces unconstrained obedience, on 
the pure and elevated principle of love. 

About this time, Mr. Wesley again visited 
Yorkshire, and she was favoured with many 
opportunities of attending his ministry, as well 
as of enjoying his conversation ; from both of 
which she derived great advantage. " On May 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 45 

the 4th," she says, " I accompanied Mr. Wes- 
ley to Birstal. He inquired how the Lord had 
brought me to himself. I found great liberty, 
and spoke my mind on that subject without re- 
serve. Indeed, this opportunity was a privi- 
lege I did not expect. I trust I shall reap 
lasting benefit from it. On the following Sab- 
bath, while pleading with the Lord in prayer 
to make me holy, he greatly blessed me, by a 
powerful application of that promise, ; I am 
thy God.' I felt unutterable peace ; and the 
cry of my soul was, ' Let thy love alone dwell 
in my breast !' I was conscious that a blessed 
change was effected within me. The Lord 
was very near, and made me truly happy in 
himself. Such a Sabbath I never knew before. 

" On Monday we were favoured with the 
presence of the venerable saint, Mr. W., at our 
house. He engaged in prayer with me, and 
encouraged me much to go forward, by enlarg- 
ing on the grace and love of the Redeemer, 
and on his present readiness to save ; warning 
me, at the same time, to beware of pride. This 
morning, before four o'clock, he left us. I feel 
my esteem for him much increased ; and my 
regret at parting was alleviated by a hope, 
that, should we meet no more on earth, we 
shall at last meet in heaven. His charge to 
me, on taking leave, was, 4 See that you become 
altogether a Christian.' " 

A day of sweet, serene, and cheering sun- 
shine now dawned upon her spirit. Those 
clouds of unbelief and sin, which had so often 



46 MEJIOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

interrupted her enjoyment, by intercepting 
from her view the light of life, were happily 
dispersed. A steadfast faith in God, through 
Christ, brought with it an establishment in 
peace and holiness ; which rendered her victo- 
rious w r hen assaulted by temptation, and kept 
her enemies beneath her feet. Not in the lan- 
guage of complaint, but with a deep and lively 
gratitude, she now records her more matured 
and evangelical experience of the power of 
saving grace; and, May 13th, thus writes : — 
" What shall I render to the Lord for all his 
benefits ? He is good indeed ! I feel his pow- 
er, and taste his love ! May all my faculties 
show forth his praise ! I have been favoured, 
this day, with a letter from Mr. Wesley : it 
has been much blessed to me. By the help of 
God I will choose the more excellent way. I 
cannot doubt but that he has purified my soul ; 
I feel power to cast myself every moment upon 
Christ ; I am nothing, but he is all in all. 
The life I now live, is indeed a life of faith in 
the Son of God ; and if I know any thing of 
my own heart, it is the Lord's. I love Him 
with every faculty of my soul, and only wish 
to be approved of him. I feel great deadness 
to the world, and love to the souls of men. I 
could do any thing to bring them to Christ ! 
Amidst much weakness and ignorance, I trust 
the Lord will give me grace to distinguish be- 
tween temptation and sin." 

The following extract from the letter here 
referred to, will exhibit the commencement of 



ME3I0IR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 47 

a correspondence which Miss Ritchie always 
justly valued, as a high and special privilege ; 
and acknowledged, consequently with becom- 
ing gratitude. Mr. Wesley's lively, forcible, 
and interesting method of instruction, on the 
most solemn and affecting topics, is strikingly 
evinced in these communications, as well as 
his parental and solicitous concern for the 
complete developement of those incipent gra- 
ces which, beneath the fostering influence of 
the Holy Spirit, he believed to be advancing to 
no ordinary measure of maturity. The anima- 
ting and entire decision of his own energetic 
piety, he was eager to infuse into the mind of 
this very promising pupil with respect to whom, 
however, that title was shortly merged in 
the more honourable and endearing name of 
" friend.'' 

May 8th, 1774, Mr. Wesley thus writes : — 

(i It is not common for me to write to any 
one first : I only answer those that write to me. 
But I willingly make an exception, with regard 
to you : for it is not a common concern that I 
feel for you. You are just rising into life ; and 
I would fain have you not almost, but altogether, 
a Christian. You cannot be satisfied with 
right notions, neither with harmlessness : no ; 
nor yet with barely external religion, how ex- 
act soever it be. Nay, you will not be con- 
tent with a taste of inward religion. This it 
has pleased God to give you already. You 
know r in whom you have believed ; you have 



48 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

tasted of the powers of the world to come ; but, 
* A taste of love will not suffice, 
Your soul for all his fulnsss cries.' 

Cry on, and never cease, ' Jesus of Nazareth, 
take away all my sins V Write freely to 
" Yours affectionately, 

"J. Wesley." 

To this letter, a part of Miss Ritchie's reply 
is as follows : — 

" Otley, May 23d, 1774. 

"Rev. Sir, — On the Sunday morning you 
left us at Birstal, several of us joined in be- 
seeching God to make us all his own. While 
I was praying that the enemies I had seen that 
day might be seen no more for ever, the Lord 
applied such promises to my soul as encour- 
aged me much. Yet I hardly dared to lay hold 
on them ; unbelief striving so hard to prevent 
my entering into rest. But the Lord continu- 
ed so to bless me, that at last I could not doubt : 
all I feared was, the losing what I had received, 
which made me backward in speaking of it. I 
thought I would wait to see how it would be 
with me by-and-by. At present I feel I am 
nothing in myself; but Jesus feeds me with his 
love from day to day. On this account I find 
him very precious indeed ; and to love him 
more and more, is all I want on earth. 

" Private prayer has been very sweet to me 
of late. I find such holy boldness in telling 
Jesus my wants, as tongue cannot express : 
those wants are many ; yet my chief request 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 49 

is, to be filled with all the fulness of God. How 
great is the blessedness of living by faith ! May 
I prove it more and more, till faith is lost in sight ! 
" I hope, dear sir, you will reprove and advise 
me as occasion shall require ; in doing which, 
you will greatly oblige your unworthy friend in 
the Gospel, E. Ritchie." 

Anxious, not only for high attainments, but 
for stability in the Christian course, Mr. Wes- 
ley again endeavours to instruct and stimulate 
his young disciple, by the following admoni- 
tions and encouragements : — 

"June Sd, 1774, 

" I shall much want to hear that you stand 
fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made 
you free. It is absolutely certain, that you 
never need lose any thing of what God has 
wrought. He is able, and he is willing, to 
give you always what he has once given. He 
will do it, provided you watch unto prayer, and 
stir up the gift of God that is in you. There 
is one invariable rule which God observes in 
all his dealings with the children of men : 
* Unto him that hath,' uses what he hath, « shall 
be given, and he shall have more abundantly.* 

65 If you use the whole power that is given 
you, he will not only continue that power, but 
increase it day by day. Mean time, be not 
ignorant of Satan's devices." 

" June 23d, 1774. 

* . * * * * 

"It gives me pleasure to find, that you still 
4 



50 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

stand fast in the state of grace, into which you 
have been admitted ; and that, in spite of many 
temptations. And these, indeed, you are still 
to expect ; for Satan neither slumbers nor 
sleeps, and he will strive to torment, if he can- 
not destroy : so that you are still called to * fight 
the good fight of faith,' and thus to ' lay hold 
on eternal life.' One admirable help towards 
conquering all, is for believers to keep close 
together ; to walk hand in hand, and provoke 
one another to love, and to good works. 

" If you should, at any time, be in doubt con- 
cerning any point, either of doctrine or prac- 
tice, use me as a friend, and speak freely to 
yours affectionately, J. Wesley." 

Yet, although thus graciously saved, Miss 
Ritchie had still to prove that she was not ex- 
empt from those trials, and spiritual exercises, 
which are incident to a state of probation. She 
thus expresses herself on this subject : " Yes- 
terday was a day of great trial. I did not 
wrestle against flesh and blood, merely, but 
against principalities and powers. Yet the 
Lord was my helper ; and I believe he permit- 
ted this, on account of an omission of which I 
had been previously guilty. May I be more 
^watchful in future, and never shun the cross 
again ! 

" I feel continually my need of the merit of 
the Saviour's death. Many things happen, 
which, though they have no concurrence of 
tny will, and for which, therefore, my Lord doe3 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 51 

not condemn me, yet are violations of that holy 
and perfect law which requires undeviating 
obedience ; and, were it not for the atoning 
blood, would shut me out of heaven. How ig- 
norant have I been ! No state of grace, I feel, 
will exempt me from trials. What the Lord 
gives must be tried ; but he that stands the 
fiery test, shall come out as fine gold, fitted for 
his treasury." 

An improved experience is here manifest. 
By the recent teachings of the Holy Spirit she 
had learned the way of faith more perfectly ; 
and the result was, a continued application to 
the covenant blood. Power, as well as light, 
had been communicated ; so that she was not 
only enabled to discern the wiles of her spiritual 
enemies, but was also armed to resist them. 
Her resources, as well as her dangers, w r ere 
better understood ; and renewing grace had 
removed those impediments which had fre- 
quently obstructed her in the commencement of 
her course. 

Walking in the light and liberty of the Gos- 
pel, she endeavoured to adorn it, by the useful- 
ness, as well as the purity, of her life. The 
sick, the poor, and the afflicted, were objects of 
her kind solicitude. She ministered to spirit- 
ual and temporal necessity ; and often felt her 
sympathies excited by the destitution, misery, 
and ignorance w r hich met her view r . Thank- 
fulness for higher privileges, and a sense of the 
responsibility incurred by their possession, im- 
pressed her mind with salutary caution, lest 



52 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

the deposit should be negligently held. Self- 
denial she accounted an essential part of 
Christian discipline. 

Another opportunity of intercourse with Mr. 
Wesley is noticed in her Journal, July 4th. 
The practised and discriminating eye of this 
venerable man discerned in his young disciple 
the promise of unusual excellence ; he, there- 
fore, with his wonted kindness and urbanity, 
encouraged her by special tokens of affection- 
ate regard. " On Sunday," she says, " I heard 
my much honoured father preach at Tadcaster. 
I afterwards accompanied him to York, and 
enjoyed the same privilege. We then went to 
Malton ; returned through York and Tadcas- 
ter, and reached Leeds on Wednesday. Here 
he preached again, and the next day at Wake- 
field, whence this faithful shepherd of the Lord's 
flock set out for Doncaster, and I returned 
with Miss Bosanquet (afterwards Mrs. Fletcher) 
to Cross-Hall, where I have enjoyed the pri- 
vilege of passing a few days. I have greatly 
valued these opportunities : though too little 
time has been afforded for retirement, yet the 
Lord kept me as the apple of his eye." 

Shortly after her return from Cross-Hall, 
she thus addresses her revered friend : — 

" Otley, July 19th, 1774. 
"Rev. Sir, — How infinite is the Saviour's 
love ! I am lost in wonder ! What has he suf- 
fered for me ! and yet how little do I love him ! 
How little am I capable of loving him ! O that 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 53 

my heart may be enlarged and filled with God ! 
But I stand by faith ; and while I am looking 
unto Jesus, nothing can harm me. My short- 
comings, and many weaknesses, you are not 
unacquainted with ; but blessed be God for 
that blood which cleanseth from all sin ! 

" I had a blessed time while at Miss Bosan- 
quet's, and had intended staying longer, but on 
Sunday I was fetched away, my mother being 
but poorly. I have abundant cause to be 
thankful for this dispensation : some time ago 
it would have tried me much ; but love makes 
all things easy. I feel that Jesus enables me 
to sit calm on tumult's wheels. Since I came 
home, I have at times been in the fire ; but 
this cannot harm while God is near. It cannot 
hurt the soul that cleaves to Jesus. 

" May the Lord abundantly bless you, dear 
sir ; and may every purchased and promised 
blessing be yours for ever. 

" So prays your unworthy daughter, 

"E. Ritchie." 

Mr. Wesley in reply, says :— 

"July 31st, 1774. 

" Trials you will have, but they will only be 
means of uniting you more closely to Christ. 
While your eye is singly fixed on him, your 
whole body will be full of light, and you will 
be enabled 

* To trace his example, The world to disdain, 
And constantly trample On pleasure and pain.' 

While you are doing this, you will not find 



54 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

many doubts of the way wherein you should 
go. The unction of the Holy One will shine 
in your heart, and shine upon your path. If 
you should at any time be in doubt, speak 
freely to Yours affectionately, 

"J. Wesley." 

Having proved the value of a Gospel minis- 
try, she cherished an affectionate attachment 
to those instruments by whom the benefit had 
been conveyed. A lively interest in the cause 
of the Redeemer manifested true affiliation into 
the family of God. These dispositions were not 
merely the result of ordinary susceptibility, 
nor did they float upon the surface of her spirit 
in the form of unproductive sentiment. They 
were the genuine and devout emotions of a pu- 
rified and thankful heart ; and indicated, by 
their fruits, the principle from which they 
sprang. The following passage will exemplify 
their practical effect : — 

" I was favoured with access to God, while 
joining with a friend to pray for our beloved 
ministers who are now assembled at their an- 
nual conference. We agreed to set apart this 
day for prayer and fasting. My spirit has 
been much refreshed ; and although I have 
not yet tasted natural food, I have been privi- 
leged to eat the bread of angels. I am much 
in spirit with our friends at Bristol. To-night 
we are to hold a watch-night, to pray for our 
teachers." 

How primitive is this conduct,, and how ex- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 55 

emplary ! Yet that her affectionate and pious 
interest in the work, and in the ministers of 
Christ, was not without an ample recompense 
in their solicitude, and care for her, appears by 
the succeeding letter from Mr. Wesley, whom, 
it seems, she had apprised that her health was. 
in a delicate and precarious state : — 

"September 1st, 1774. 

" It is an admirable providence w T hich keeps' 
you thus weak in body, till your soul has re- 
ceived more strength. It is good that you 
should feel how very helpless you are, that you 
may hang upon him continually. Are you al- 
ways sensible of his presence ? In what sense 
do you pray without ceasing ? Can you in 
every thing give thanks ? and have you a wit- 
ness in yourself, that all you say and do is 
well pleasing to him ? 

" Could you but use constant exercise in the 
open air, I think you would need no other me- 
dicine ; but it is certain, be your body well or 
ill, all is best, as long as your soul is stayed on 
him ; and why should not this be, without any 
intermission, till your spirit returns to God ? 
Nay, with a continual increase ! For this is 
your calling, to sink deeper and deeper into 
him ; out of his fulness to receive more and 
more, till you know all that love of God which 
passeth knowledge. 

" I hope you do not pass any day without 
spending some time in private exercises. What 
do you read at those seasons ? Do you read, 



56 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

as it were, by chance ; or have you a method 
in reading ? I want you to make the best use 
that is possible of every means of improve- 
ment. Now is the time. Now you have the 
fervour of youth on your side. Now animal 
nature is in perfection. Now your faculties 
are in their vigour ; and happy are you who 
have been enabled to begin your race betimes. 
I Jiope you are just now minding this one 
thing, — looking unto Jesus; and pressing on 
to the mark, to the prize of our high calling. 
O run, and never tire ! So shall your love and 
zeal always be a comfort to 

" Yours affectionately, 

"J. Wesley." 

The insertion of this admirable letter at full 
length can require no apology. It must be re- 
garded as a treasure, by every young Christian 
more especially. Miss Ritchie's reply to her 
venerable correspondent, is as follows: — 

« Otley, October 18th, 1774. 
« Rev. Sir, — I am not worthy of the favour 
with which you indulge me ; but this increases 
my obligation. O that God may reward you 
for your labour of love towards a poor insig- 
nificant worm I My dear mother has been very 
ill for some time ; but is now, thank God, much 
better. Attending her and the family has ta- 
ken up the greatest part of my time ; but the 
Lord does all things well. I was enabled to 
praise him ; for his dispensations are faithful- 
ness, and love. The Lord is a kind and indul- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 57 

gent father to me. May 1 be passive in his 
hands, ever crying, * Not my will, but thine 
be done!' — for, let what will come, the soul 
that cleaves to Jesus, and rests in the will of 
God, shall experience perfect peace. 

" To your important queries, 1 answer : I 
am in some measure always sensible of his pre- 
sence, though, at times, I have a much deeper 
consciousness that God is here, than at others ; 
and though my lips are not always employed in 
calling on the Lord, yet I feel the desire of my 
soul continually towards him, and my heart 
cries unto him without a voice, i Do with me 
what thou wilt !' So that in this sense I pray 
without ceasing ; and in every thing I can 
give thanks, because I know, whatever my 
Lord permits will work together for my pre- 
sent and eternal good. Indeed, I feel it does so ; 
for even temptations and trials seem to fix me 
firmer on the everlasting rock. I am well as- 
sured, my Lord gives only what is needful. 
May patience, then, have its perfect work ! 

"As to your last query, I feel a continued 
sense of my great unjvorthiness, and the im- 
perfection of all my words, thoughts, and ac- 
tions ; but Christ bears the iniquity of my most 
holy things, and, through him, the Father beholds, 
well pleased, a helpless worm. If I am in doubt 
of any thing I have said or done, (which has 
been the case sometimes,) instead of reasoning 
with the enemy of my soul, I fly as for my life 
to Christ, who, without upbraiding, tells me 
he is all my own, May I be enabled perfectly 



58 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

to love him, and worthily to magnify his holy 
name ! 

" I suppose by this time you have entered 
your winter quarters. May every one that 
hears you be prevailed on to follow the Lamb ! 
May your unwearied labours be crowned with 
abundant success ! May the face of the Al- 
mighty continually shine upon you ! and may 
your soul be continually penetrated with his 
loving presence ? So prays, dear sir, 
" Your affectionate friend, 

"E. Ritchie." 

This letter, which is a beautiful counterpart 
to the preceding one, is valuable as an epitome 
of the religious attainments of the writer, at 
that period in her progress at which we are 
now arrived. It indicates no inconsiderable 
acquaintance with the spirit and genius of 
Christianity, as a gracious and an adequate 
provision for the delinquencies of human na- 
ture ; securing, at the same time, the glory of 
God and the happiness of man. Its operation 
on her heart, by the power of the Holy Spirit, 
had now induced a blessed state of liberty and 
peace. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 59 



CHAPTER II. 

u He who makes himself a denizen of God's world, 
abideth for ever ; eternity is stamped on his enjoy- 
ments and pursuits." — Jebb. 

The progress of Miss Ritchie's mind, in 
Christian knowledge and experience, has now 
been traced from that important period when 
she yielded fully to the teaching and convictions 
of the Holy Spirit, and made a solemn choice 
of Christ and his religion, in preference to the 
vanities and pleasures of a transitory and se- 
ductive world. 

Through the process of a sound conversion, 
she passed from the disquietude of an awakened 
conscience, to the enjoyment of a state of deep 
and settled peace with God. Her joy was per- 
manent and operative : its foundation was a 
sense of reconciliation to the God she had of- 
fended, through faith in the atoning sacrifice 
and mediation of her adorable Redeemer ; and 
its result was, a holy dedication to the service 
of her Saviour of every power, and principle, 
and faculty, with which her nature was endued. 
Constrained by the mercies of God, as well as 
by a conviction of responsibility, she could not 
be supinely inactive, when pressing opportuni- 
ties were presented for the diligent occupation 
of her talents, in the service of God or man. 

In November, 1775, she was appointed the 
leader of a class, which she most justly desig- 



60 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

nates " a weighty office." She entered on hei* 
charge, impressed with its importance, and 
deeply sensible of her incompetency to fulfil its 
duties, without much Divine assistance. These 
separate associations of the subjects of his 
ministry were formed by the profound and 
comprehensive wisdom of the venerable Founder 
of the Methodist Connection, for the purpose of 
adapting personal instruction to the case of 
every individual, and of bringing the whole 
body under kind and watchful ministerial dis- 
cipline. The experience of a century has proved 
their salutary and effective operation. Their 
principle is founded in the sympathies of human 
nature, and recognized throughout the oracles 
of God. Social feelings are thus enlisted into 
the service of religion ; the more difficult and 
abstract ministrations of the pulpit are brought 
down to special states and circumstances ; a 
surveillance more minute than could without 
such aid be exercised, and a compactness, only 
to be gained by combination, may be ranked 
among the benefits resulting from this portion 
of the system of Wesleyan discipline. 

To those whom observation or experience 
may have guided to reflection on the complicated 
character of man, — and by whom the human 
heart, in its inexplicable mazes, has been read 
and studied, and actions, words, thoughts, feel- 
ings, motives, analyzed, — -it will appear a charge 
of no small magnitude to be entrusted with the 
oversight of others, and to incur, on their ac- 
count, responsibilities to God and to his Church, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 61 

The faithful and judicious exercise of such an 
influence as this charge implies, requires much 
caution, and no ordinary measure of the wisdom 
from above. Truth, to be effectually imparted, 
should be clearly understood ; and the work of 
grace upon the spirit must be personally expe- 
rienced, before its progress can be traced cor- 
rectly upon other hearts. Thus, genuine 
conversion, habits of reflective and consistent 
piety, acquaintance with the oracles of God, 
and wisdom, through the teaching of the Holy 
Spirit, sought by prayerful meditation, to adapt 
his various counsels to the circumstances of his 
charge ; — these, with fervent zeal, and charity 
that can expand itself beyond the circle of its 
own immediate interests to sympathize with 
others in their difficulties, cares, and sorrows, 
are but in part the qualifications that should be 
found in him to whom the arduous office of 
a leader is assigned. 

Such a class of persons, however, possessing 
in various degrees, the requisite efficiency, Mr. 
Wesley found among his early members ; and 
such have still been furnished, through the pro- 
vidence and grace of Christ. The stated min- 
isterial visitations of these classes subjugate the 
whole to pastoral inspection, and give com- 
pleteness to a system of instruction which, 
while embracing an enlarged circumference, 
combines and concentrates its energies, and 
acts with an effective vigour on each separate 
part. 

On undertaking such a charge, it is not sur- 



62 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

prising to find Miss Ritchie timidly conscious 
of her own deficiency, and earnestly imploring 
assistance from above. She dared not disobey 
the call of duty ; and, therefore, in dependence 
upon heavenly succour, entered heartily into a 
work for which she was peculiarly adapted, by 
a natural ingenuous simplicity of character, as 
well as by a lively and deep experience of the 
power of saving grace. Indeed, through her 
long Christian course, she was, in this depart- 
ment, eminently useful and acceptable. Clear 
in her own conceptions, unhesitating in her 
purposes, and uniformly vigilant, devout, and 
prayerful, she endeavoured to impress, on those 
who sought her counsel, the same decision, ear- 
nestness, and spirituality of mind. Her man- 
ner was attractive, lively, unembarrassed, kind, 
familiar ; yet dignity attempered sweetness, 
and induced gratitude, affection, and respect. 
The sphere in which she moved, for many 
years, afforded ample scope for the employment 
of her talents in this interesting line. How 
often she was made the minister of mercy, in 
confirming the believer, in encouraging the 
mourner, in directing admonition to the trifling 
and lukewarm, and in addressing words of 
wisdom to the ignorant, the records of eternity 
will show. 

Not long after her appointment to this office, 
she makes the following observations : — " I have 
been led much to meditate on the perfection of 
the human character of Christ. My mind has 
dwelt particularly on his love, his meekness, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 63 

his humility, his resignation, and all those hea- 
venly dispositions which he manifested here 
below. My soul aspires to imitate this bright 
example. I hear that word which says, ' Let 
that mind be in you which was also in Christ 
Jesus.' Therefore, in the exercise of faith and 
hope I wait for a more full conformity to him, 
my living Head. I bless his name who has 
already shown me so much mercy, as to keep 
me from desiring any thing that is not in ac- 
cordance with his will, and that does not centre 
in himseif." 

These reflections indicate progressive piety 
and wisdom. In the person of the Saviour was 
exhibited the living form of holiness, instinct 
with its vital spirit. Hence, in this Divine 
exemplar the Christian sees his model ; the 
pattern, after which he is to form his charac- 
ter ; the mould of true perfection, into which 
his spirit must be cast. In this idea there is 
nothing undefined; a real substance is pre- 
sented, which becomes the object of distinct 
perception, and may be calmly studied by the 
mind. The result of this contemplative and 
prayerful exercise the word of truth deter- 
mines : " Beholding" Him, " we are changed 
into the same image, by the Spirit of the 
Lord." 

On the commencement of the next year, after 
thankfully reviewing her mercies, Miss Ritchie 
observes : — " For some time past I have been 
enabled to live with a deep sense of eternal 
things upon my mind. I feel great deadness 



64 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

to every thing here below, and see nothing 
desirable but what will bring me nearer to God. 
Yesterday I felt much exposed to the sugges- 
tions of the adversary ; but the Lord preserved 
me from the power of temptation, and sustained 
my soul in humble resignation to his will. I 
was much blessed while reading the former part 
of the seventeenth chapter of St. Matthew's 
Gospel. When I came to, i This is my beloved 
Son, hear ye him,' I stopped, and prayed my 
Lord inwardly to speak. He graciously an- 
swered, and applied many precious promises to 
my soul. He said, \ I am thy salvation.' I 
felt his power, and with holy triumph exulted 
in the Lord of hosts. 

" Some time ago, L was permitted to pass 
through much inward exercise : the powers of 
darkness were suffered to assault me in a man- 
ner I had not lately experienced ; but the Lord 
upheld me by his power. He gave me resig- 
nation to bear the fiery trial, rebuked my foes, 
and enabled me to feel the blessedness of en- 
during temptation. Let me, with fresh courage, 
take the field. Our conquering God will give 
the victory, and lead me into heights and 
depths of redeeming love which are yet un- 
known. 

" I feel a fixed determination to pursue my 
way ; and am gathering up the powers of my 
soul into my great Restorer's presence, that he 
may give me strength, and employ it to his 
glory. I see time — a moment. But the im- 
portance of that moment fills me with a desire 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 65 

to live for Him alone, by whose almighty love 
I live at all." 

From these and many similar quotations the 
spiritual and internal nature of her piety may 
be discerned. She truly lived a life " hid with 
Christ in God." Its joys and sorrows were 
alike concealed from the observance of the 
world; nor were its conflicts or its triumphs 
connected chiefly with the things of earth and 
time. Allowed to pass within the vail, she 
held communion with the ever-blessed Trinity. 
The propitiatory, sprinkled with the blood of 
the atoning sacrifice, was open of access ; and 
the brightness of the glory beaming from be- 
tween the cherubim was tempered by the still- 
ascending incense of the intercession of her 
great High Priest. On these, as on Divine 
realities, the contemplative view of faith was 
fixed ; and while the Lord, the Spirit, who had 
removed from her heart that vail by which spi- 
ritual objects are excluded from the perception 
of the carnal mind, had taught her to discern 
her own interest in this mysterious and sub- 
lime economy, he showed her also, in unison 
with the explicit announcements of Scripture, 
that she was surrounded with other orders of 
intelligences than those which dwell in houses 
of clay. Thrones, and dominions, and princi- 
palities, and powers, under the array of their 
respective leaders, both from above and from 
beneath, await, with intense interest, the issue 
of the conflict, so long pending, in this lower 
world. Every human spirit, as a part of the 



66 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

great whole, engages separately the vigilant 
attention of this mighty cloud of witnesses : 
man alone appears regardless of the ineffable 
importance of the position which he occupies ; 
while fiends and angels, with an earnestness 
proportioned to their more extensive knowledge, 
mark every step of his eventful progress ; and, 
to the utmost limit of permitted influence, ob- 
struct or further him in his probationary careen 
To prompt to skeptical insensibility, on this 
important article of Holy Writ, is but a too 
successful stratagem of that deceitful enemy, 
whose machinations are so organized as to 
delude in order to destroy. The subject of this 
memoir was not seduced into his fatal snare* 
While she felt, that it was a part of the privi- 
lege included in " the communion of saints" to 
recognize a hallowed interest in " the assembly 
of innumerable angels," as w r ell as a sublime 
and sweet association with the spirits of the 
just made perfect, she was also sensible of dan- 
ger from that adversary, who, " as a roaring 
lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may 
devour," Rat, though accessible to his attacks, 
she was not ignorant of his devices, nor unpre- 
pared to meet them. She knew that, "greater 
is he that is in us, than he that is in the 
world," and " perfect love caste th out fear." 

Her friendship with Mr. Wesley became in- 
creasingly intimate and valuable. His annual 
visits to the societies in that part of thQ king- 
dom afforded her frequent opportunities of per- 
sonal intercourse ; and, in the interim, she 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 67 

maintained with him a regular correspondence. 
With a view to the benefit of her health, 
(which was at this time extremely delicate,) as 
well as to promote her spiritual advantage, he 
frequently invited her to accompany him in his 
journeys through the surrounding country ; 
and, on these occasions, introduced her to many 
valuable friends. Of one of these, Miss Roe, 
(afterward the wife of the Rev. James Rogers,) 
she speaks with peculiar interest and affection : 
" I feel," she says, " toward Miss Roe, what I 
have seldom felt toward any one. I believe, 
as dear Mr. Wesley expresses it, we * are twin 
souls/ " 

On her return from one of these excursions, 
she thus writes: — "May, 1776. — I have been 
with Mr. Wesley to the various places he has 
visited in this country ; and have had, while 
travelling, many valuable opportunities for con- 
versation. I thank God I feel my soul much 
strengthened, and my bodily health improved : 
I have enjoyed uninterrupted sunshine." 

The following extracts from Mr. Weslev's 
correspondence, about this time, will show by 
what Scriptural and kind advices he strove to 
stimulate her progress in the paths of piety and 
holiness. No monasticism entered into his 
idea of religion ; its essential characteristics 
were activity, beneficence, and love. 

« March IVh, 1775. 
" I trust you will find more and more oppor- 
tunity of using whatever strength you have. 



68 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

even at Otley. Wherever the Lord revives his 
work, we are more particularly called to work 
together with him. Now, be instant in season, 
and out of season. Redeem the time. Buy 
up every opportunity. In the morning sow thy 
seed, and in the evening slack not thine hand, 
and God will give the increase." 

" 1776. 
" The word of the Lord to you is, < Feed my 
lambs.' Methinks I see you giving up yourself, 
as far as possibly you can, to that blessed work ; 
carrying the weak, as it were, in your bosom, 
and gently leading the rest to the waters of 
comfort. Meantime your own soul will enjoy 
a well of water, springing up into everlasting 
life. If you find any perplexing temptation in 
your way, you should not scruple to let me 
know. Youth is the season for many of the 
most dangerous temptations incident to human 
nature. But, indeed, you are preserved from 
many of these, by your settled determination to 
slight all dreams of creature-happiness, and to 
give your heart to him who alone is worthy." 

" 1776. 
"'He that followeth me,' says our Lord, 
* walketh not in darkness.' Nothing can be 
more certain. Closely follow him, and you will 
never come into any darkness of soul : on the 
contrary, your light shall shine more and more 
unto the perfect day. Nothing but sin can 
bring you into conmsion ; and this, I trust, God 
has bruised under your feet. Surely, then, you 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 69 

are under no necessity of ever losing the least 
part of what God has given you. Bat you 
may stand fast in glorious liberty, till your 
spirit returns to God." 

The following letter, addressed to a friend 
recently married, will exhibit the affectionate 
solicitude, as well as the fidelity, with which 
she availed herself of the privileges of Christian 
friendship. All earthly associations were, in 
her view, connected with eternity. Her inter- 
course with those she loved was, therefore, so 
conducted as to promote their preparation for 
a permanent reunion in those mansions of 
celestial glory, " where no enemy can enter, 
and whence no friend departs." 

"January Wth, 1777. 

" I am solicitous for your welfare, and ear- 
nestly wish you every blessing requisite for 
your present and eternal good. In many 
things the Lord has indulged you, and given 
you the desire of your heart. I trust you now 
inquire, < What shall I render to the Lord for 
all his benefits V For, according to the senti- 
ment of Dr. Young, * if Heaven is tremendous 
in its frown, it is also formidable in its favours.* 
Taese are ' a call to duty, not discharge from 
care.' But for what does your heavenly Fa- 
ther call? He stoops to ask your love. He 
kindly saith, ' My son, give me thy heart. 1 
Obey the gracious summons: lay your all at 
his feet. 

"Be careful, my dear friend, that the out* 



70 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

ward thing3 to which your change of situation 
exposes you, take not up too much of your 
thoughts. You are called to Mary's situation ; 
she sat at the Redeemer's feet, and heard his 
voice, — that voice which faithful souls alone 
can hear. Nor should outward employments 
hinder close attention to the voice of God. 
But he always works in quiet minds : there- 
fore, constantly strive in patience to possess 
your soul ; and endeavour to keep your mind 
recollected ; so shall you find, in the midst of 
outward hurry, that all is peace, and heaven, 
and God, within. But how shall my friend 
attain this blessedness? Our adorable Saviour 
gives the answer : ' Come unto me, and I will 
give you rest.' Yes, rest from all that id not 
God ; rest from all your sin and strife ; rest 
from the image of the earthly, into the Lnage 
of the heavenly. Only come. Be determined, 
nothing short of this shall satisfy you. Plead 
the promises ; strive to believe them ; choose 
the most excellent path ; and may the Lord the 
Spirit guide and bring you to the promised 
land! May my dear friend, and the partner 
of her days, drink deep of the well of life ! 
May you be truly helps meet for each other ! 
You should continually * provoke one another 
to love, and to good works.' Be simple, free, 
and open with each other. Go on, mutually 
contending for your native heaven, always 
remembering that you are strangers and pil- 
grims here, as all your fathers were. Set your 
affections wholly on things above. When you 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 71 

are blessed, eat not your morsel alone ; but tell 
him, whom God hath given you, what you feel ; 
and jointly pray and praise together. You are 
not only to help each other for time, but chiefly 
for eternity. Let it be fixed in your minds, 
* We are designed by Providence to make each 
other happy.' Therefore, stir each other up 
to seek for all the mind that was in the meek, 
the humble, the lowly Saviour. What a pat- 
tern 1 Follow the footsteps of His love; and 
study to help each other on, till both receive 
the starry crown, 

" May God bless, keep, and preserve you ! 
So prays yours in the bonds of Divine love, 

"E. Ritchie." 

But in the midst of many circumstances, 
pleasant and congenial to her best and purest 
feelings, there were other things sufficiently 
perplexing, through which, at this time, she 
was called to pass. Her health, that had been 
long precarious, became increasingly infirm. 
"I live," she says, "near eternity. For these 
two days, in a peculiar manner, I see, I feel, 
that I am on the borders of the grave. I am 
very weak in body, buj: happy in God. Some- 
thing seems to tell me, I shall not long be an- 
inhabitant of this world. Thy time, O Lord, 
is best ; and I am in thy hands ; do with me 
what thou wilt, only let me live or die to thee ! 
I have a bad cough, and much pain in my side ; 
perhaps my race is nearly run, and I shall 
shortly be at home. I feel power to give my- 



72 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

self up into the hands of God. I cannot 
choose either life or death. The Lord's will 
be done." 

" To see a young person in the very prime 
of life, gradually losing her strength, and flesh, 
and appetite, and visibly hastening to the 
grave ; yet placid and meek, and well satisfied 
to be weak and to be sickly, and to be just what 
her Lord appoints, — is a striking object, not to 
be viewed by a considerate mind without much 
profit." So said a venerable clergyman of the 
last century ; and the remark was strikingly 
exemplified in the present instance. 

While struggling with disease that threaten- 
ed fatal consequences, other trials overtook 
her. The severe and sudden illness of her fa- 
ther, who by paralysis was brought within the 
very verge of death, affected her extremely ; 
her mother also was afflicted ; and Mrs. H., 
the friend and patron of her early years, was 
called unexpectedly into another world. From 
a recent interview, in which religion had been 
made the topic of their conversation, she che- 
rished the impression that a change had been 
effected, on that deeply-interesting subject, in 
.this lady's mind. On the recollection of past 
circumstances, she records her gratitude to 
God, who had enabled her to choose the better 
part. " What is wealth," she adds, " to her 
who has now left this vale of tears, and could 
not purchase by it one moment's reprieve ?" 

Consumptive symptoms, which had been long 
incipient, at length assumed a very serious 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 73 

character, and threatened at no distant period 
to lay low the tabernacle of that spirit which 
had been early disciplined to take its place 
among existences of a superior order, and to 
enter on the rest reserved in glory for the saints 
of God. The preparation of her mind for this 
afflictive dispensation was evidenced by dead- 
ness to the world, increasing confidence in her 
Redeemer, progressive holiness, and faith, and 
hope ; through which she realized her interest 
in the unseen glories of eternity. These dis- 
positions seemed to strengthen in the prospect 
of approaching death. March 29, 1777, she 
observes : — " I have been very weak in body, 
but am kept sweetly dependent upon my Sa- 
viour : in his will I can and do rejoice. At 
present, I am threatened with consumption, 
and am under the care of Mr. Hey :* yester- 
day I was a little better, and went to the Lord's 
table : he met me, and graciously refreshed 
my soul. Christ is mine : my soul is truly 
alive, and my heart in heaven." 

The following passage from a letter address- 
ed at this time to Miss Ritchie by a very dear 
friend, adverts to a secret in psychological 
philosophy, which possibly may never be dis- 
closed in time. " One circumstance," he says, 
" I will mention, though it is but a little one, 
which I have frequently observed : I scarcely 
ever receive a letter from you but just when 
you have been laid upon my mind more than 

* An eminent surgeon of Leeds. 



74 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

usual. If at any time I feel a peculiar near- 
ness to you, I expect to hear from you soon 
after. Can this be accounted for by the sym- 
pathy of spirits? or can spirits, as it were, 
attract each other, even at a distance'/" 

This curious subject has not escaped the 
observation of some profound and philosophic 
minds. None but He who formed the inexpli- 
cable links which compose that chain of sym- 
pathy which connects man with man, can solve 
the mystery of these occasional illapses, which 
seem to indicate that there are latent faculties 
in the immortal spirit which can only be de- 
veloped in a higher state of being, but may 
then be adequately and delightfully employed. 
In later life, Mrs. Mortimer was wont to con- 
verse with much interest on these indistinct 
intimations of embryo powers and faculties in 
man's immortal soul. 

How much Miss Ritchie's circumstances 
were at this period calculated to awaken the 
sympathies of her friends, and how fully she 
was prepared to meet the conflict with man's 
most appalling enemy, the following extracts 
will evince : — " May, 1777. All praise to my 
adorable Redeemer, my soul is filled with love 
and thankfulness to him. For some days past 
1 seem to have been taking large steps toward 
the grave. On Wednesday I set apart several 
little things to be given to my friends after my 
decease ; and, having ordered my funeral ac- 
cording to my mother's mind, I have now 
nothing to do but to continue looking to Jesus, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 75 

until he take my spirit home. I feel that I 
have no trust but in him ; every blessing I 
have received has been through faith in his 
name; and still, as a poor helpless worm, as a 
sinner saved, I come to him, and prove that 
the blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin. Yes- 
terday the adversary suggested, ' It appears all 
well at present; but how will it be when the 
last enemy really comes?' My Lord answered 
for me, by applying that portion of his holy 
word, i Having loved his own, he loved them 
unto the end.' My soul was filled with praise, 
and still continues in a frame of thankfulness 
and love. I seem near my heaven, my eternal 
home. The doctors think me in such danger, 
that they say they may use means to alleviate 
pain, but have no hope of recovery. This 
news so elevated my spirit with the hope of 
being shortly with Christ, that for some time I 
seemed either not to have, or not to feel, so 
much pain as in general." 

The following letter, addressed to Mr. Wes- 
ley, states the serious circumstances in which 
she was at this time placed : — 

" Otley, April 24*7*, 1777. 

" Rev. Sir, — Welcome, thrice welcome, was 
your last kind letter. Tears of love and joy 
overflowed my eyes, and my heart was filled 
with thankfulness to find that you still favoured 
with your friendship the unworthiest of all your 
children. 

* Since I wrote last, the state of my health 



76 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

has been much altered. At that time my 
complaint seemed just coming on ; but as I 
have often had slight attacks which have been 
removed, I thought little of them : but it has 
pleased God that they have continued ever 
since, so that my strength is greatly decayed. 
I have much pain in my breast and side, ac- 
companied with a little short cough. My fever 
is generally very strong in the afternoon ; and 
when it goes off I am very feeble, and some- 
times so low, that it is pain to me either to 
move or speak. But, glory be to God ! I have 
not one anxious thought : to me to live is Christ, 
and to die would be great gain. Since my 
body has been weak, my soul has been truly 
happy : I feel on the wing for heaven ; my 
affections are fixed on things above ; and my 
spirit rejoices in hope of the glory to which I 
am hastening. 

" May all the blessings of a covenant-God 
be yours ! So prays, Rev. sir, your affection- 
ate, though unworthy, daughter in Christ, 

"E. Ritchie." 

During this season of affliction, Mr. Wesley, 
being in Yorkshire, visited her several times. 
These proofs of his friendship were refreshing 
to her spirit ; and she observes : — " My dear 
and reverend father has been always to me as 
the immediate messenger of God, and never 
more so than at present : his conversation led 
me to desire a still more close acquaintance 
with the Triune God. I parted from him 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 77 

under the impression that we should shortly 
meet in paradise." 

That Mr. Wesley's mind received a similar 
impression, appears from the insertion in his 
Journal at the time. " On Friday, May 9th, 
1777," he says, " I went to Malton, hoping 
to meet Miss Ritchie there ; but instead of her 
I found a letter, which informed me that she 
was on the brink of the grave ; but added, 
1 Surely my Lord will permit me to see you once 
more in the body.' I would not disappoint the 
congregation, but as soon as I had done preach- 
ing set out, and about four in the morning came 
to Otley. I minutely inquired into the cir- 
cumstances of her illness ; she is dropped sud- 
denly into the third stage of a consumption, 
having one or more ulcers in her lungs, spit- 
ting blood, having a continued pain in her 
breast, and a constant hectic fever, which dis- 
ables her either from riding on horseback, or 
bearing the motion of a carriage ; meantime, 
she breathes nothing but praise and love. Short- 
lived flower, and ripe for a better soil !" He 
writes again : — " After preaching in the even- 
ing at Leeds, I pushed on to Otley. Here I 
found E. Ritchie weaker and happier than ever : 
I spent half an hour with her, to 

* Teach at onc3, and learn of her, to die/ 

And again : — " Thursday, June 5th. — About 
noon I came to Otley, and found E. R. just 
alive ; but all alive to God. In the evening it 
seemed as if the departing saint had dropped 



78 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

her mantle upon the congregation, — such an awe 
rested upon them while I explained and applied, 
'They were all filled with the Holy Ghost.' 

" Monday 9th. — I spent one hour more at 
Otley. Spectaculum Deodignum! I have not 
before seen so triumphant an instance of the 
power of faith. Though in constant pain, she 
makes no complaint. So does the glory of God 
overshadow her, and swallow up her will in his ; 
she is indeed all praise, all meekness, and all 
love." 

Such are the glorious triumphs of the Gospel. 
It shines forth in the perfection of its bright- 
ness, through the darkest shades of human life. 
Those who, standing (as it were) upon the 
verge of heaven, have been allowed to witness 
scenes like these, will not only, with the vene- 
rable Wesley, regard them as " spectacles 
worthy of God ;" but they will feel that they 
are such as the power of God alone can exhibit, 
when it has wrought in the heart of man that 
salvation which extracts the sting from death. 
What calculation can compute the value of 
religion, or what infatuation equal the sin and 
folly of neglecting or despising its important 
claims? 

Still anxious respecting the spiritual as well 
as physical circumstances of his suffering 
friend, Mr Wesley thus kindly urges his inqui- 
ries, shortly after the preceding interviews : — 

" June 16th, 1777. 
" I write a few lines on condition that you 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. i V 

will not write, if it does you hurt ; it certainly 
will, if you lean upon your breast, or if you 
write much at a time. But, perhaps, (of which 
you yourself must be the judge,) you might 
write a f'ew lines now and then. Do you still 
find your will wholly given up ? Have you no 
choice as to life or death ? Have you no choice 
as to the manner of your death ? Are you not 
afraid of the pains of dissolution ? Can you 
freely part with all your friends here, 

' And to an unknown somewhere wing your way?* 
Do you never lose your consciousness of the 
presence of the Three-one God ? And is your 
testimony of his Spirit, that you are saved from 
inward sin, never obscured ? Are you always 
happy 1 Do you always enjoy a hope full of 
immortality ? I ask many questions, that you 
may have an opportunity of being a witness 
for God : whether you live or die, I think in 
life or death you will not forget 

" Yours affectionately, 

"J. Wesley." 

Miss Ritchie's reply is as follows : — ■ 

«Otley 9 June2Uh, 1777. 

" Rev. Sir, — Many thanks to you for the 
repeated proofs of your watchful care over me. 
Glory be to God! I feel my will wholly given 
up to him. I delight in what he chooses ; and 
as to life and death, I am in a strait between 
two, and cannot choose either. The time when, 
and the manner how, I entirely leave to Him, 



80 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

who ordereth all things well ; bat am led to 
think that in a little time I shall be 
* Where saints in an ecstasy gaza, 
And hang on a crucified God.' 

Neither have I any fear of the pains of disso- 
lution. The Lord gives me to believe, that 
dying will be like falling asleep in the arms of 
God ; and the transporting thought of waking 
in the realms of endless day fills me with joy 
unspeakable. As to my friends, I never loved 
them better ; but at God's command I freely 
leave them all. Death itself cannot disjoin 
our spirits, neither shall our bodies be parted 
long. 

" I always feel the eternal God present ; but 
of late my soul has thirsted for a fuller mani- 
festation of the ever-blessed Trinity. Glory 
be to God, I constantly feel his Spirit witness- 
ing with mine, that the blood of Jesus cleanseth 
from all sin ! From the time I first received 
this blessed testimony, I have never lost it. 
Of late it has been more strong, more perma- 
nent, more clear. Indeed, I am always happy, 
and sometimes unspeakably so. I ever feel my 
spirit peaceful, calm, serene. My hope is full 
of immortality : I feel a pledge of future bliss, 
and greatly rejoice in hope of being shortly in 
possession of that inheritance to which I am 
swiftly hastening. O what mercy has been, 
and still is, extended to me ! I am a sinner, 
freely and fully saved by grace. T have but 
one desire ; that is, to glorify God in time and 
in eternity. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 81 

" I continued till last Friday much as when 
you left me : since that time I have been 
rather worse. 1 trust you will continue to 
pray for me ; but only ask that God's will may 
be done. In so doing you will greatly oblige, 
Rev. sir, your ever affectionate, though un- 
worthy friend, E. Ritchie." 

The work of preparation being, however, 
thus effected, and her will surrendered to the 
will of God, the threatened stroke was merci- 
fully turned aside. Toward the end of June, 
the violence of the disorder gradually abated ; 
and the balance seemed to tremble between life 
and death. 

In July, Miss Ritchie writes : " The violence 
of my dangerous symptoms is greatly decreased. 
I know not what my heavenly Father means to 
do with me. I am willing, should he see meet 
to spare me, to put to sea again. But his 
sacred will be done. I had almost gained the 
port, and thought eternal life secure ; yet for 
me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." 

Under these improved circumstances, her 
venerable friend thus kindly addresses her : — 

" August 2d, 1777. 
6i It is with great pleasure I learn that God 
has been pleased to lift you up from the gates 
of death ; and that your strength is considera- 
bly increased, although you are far from being 
out of danger. When and in what manner 
was this change wrought? Can you impute it 
6 



82 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

to any outward circumstance ? How did you 
feel your mind affected when you found a return 
of strength ? Did you rejoice or grieve ? or 
calmly desire, * Let the will of the Lord be done?' 
In what respects are you better than when I 
saw you ? in what respects the same or worse? 
Give me as particular an account as you can. 
Do you find your soul as much alive to God as 
ever ? Does not the corruptible body press 
down the soul? Do you feel faith's abiding 
impression, realizing things to come ? Do you 
live in eternitv, and walk in eternity ? 
U Yours affectionately. 

"J. Wesley." 

It is to be regretted that the answer to these 
queries does not appear. 

In the course of a few months her health was 
surprisingly re-established, and her prolonged 
life presented, with grateful and devoted ar- 
dour, as a sacrifice to Him who had raised her 
from the borders of the grave. This gracious 
restoration she regarded always as an evidence 
of the power of earnest and believing prayer. 
Many special and fervent supplications, had 
been offered to the throne of grace on her be- 
half; and to their prevalence, through the Re- 
deemer's intercession, she ascribed her reno- 
vated life. Yet, for many years, her health 
continued in a very delicate and precarious 
state ; while circumstances of domestic trial 
made demands upon her strength and spirits, 
which she was but ill prepared to meet. But. 



1HEM0IR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 83 

through the whole, her tranquil confidence in 
God remained unshaken. Holy resignation, 
and a Divine assurance of her interest in his 
covenant-mercy, enabled her to reap increasing 
benefit from every chastisement, which she well 
knew was the correction of a father's hand. 
The afflicted state of both her parents, the loss, 
at length, of her beloved father, and her own 
infirmities, combined to discipline her spirit, 
and to test the sterling value of her piety. 

On this subject, she thus writes to Mr. 
Wesley :— 

" Since I wrote last, it has pleased the Lord 
to call me to much exercise both of body and 
mind. My dear mother was scarcely raised 
from her illness, before my father grew worse ; 
so that we expected his dissolution every hour. 
He suffered so much from constant sickness, 
and from his other infirmities, that, though I 
felt the loss of a tender parent would affect me 
much more than I have sometimes, when at a 
distance, thought it would, yet I could not ask 
his life ; but only cried, ' Lord, fully prepare 
him for thy kingdom, and let thy will be done !' 
It has pleased the Lord to restore him a little, 
and for some time he has not had those 
strangling fits. I do not remember that he has 
had one while sitting up, and he chose rather 
not to lie down at all, than to have an issue 
set. He sleeps most of his time, but has not 
attempted to go to bed for some weeks past. 
For this fortnight my dear mother has again 



84 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

been very ill. I am daily called to minister 
to their wants; and, blessed be God, though I 
have not all the time I used to have for reli- 
gious exercises, yet I experience that < obe- 
dience is better than sacrifice ;' and my 
gracious Lord favours me with a constant 
sense of his approbation." 

This last observation is not unworthy of re- 
mark. Miss Ritchie was practically pious ; 
and her religion granted no release from ne- 
cessary duties. It was nourished by habitual 
exercises of the heart, in faith and love to God ; 
and when his providence required her to " show 
piety at home," she was prompt and willing to 
obey the call. 

On the commencement of the year 1780, she 
thus expresses her continued sense of the Di- 
vine goodness : — " How gracious is my Lord ! 
Words can ill express the happiness I have en- 
joyed in fellowship with hi in. In secret, 
prayer has frequently been lost in praise, while 
by faith I have anticipated joys to come. 

"January 30th. — On the 25th, I went to 
Leeds ; and, after a comfortable ride, met my 
dear friend Clapham, in peace. On Friday 
the 28th, Mrs. C, Mr. A., &c, and I, attended 
Mr. Benson and Miss Thompson to the old 
church, where they were solemnly united for 
life. After breakfast we went to Halifax, where 
I found dear Mrs. Crosby : we had a comfort- 
able afternoon, and by Mr. Benson's desire spent 
most of the evening in prayer. 

"February 14th.--- For some time past, my 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 85 

chief outward employment has been attending 
to my dear father, who. though still very poorly, 
is happy in God. May the Lord prepare him 
for the awful hour of death, and cheer him by 
his presence, while passing through the dreary 
vale! 

"February 20th. — The last week has been 
a time of trial. My bodily strength declines 
daily, and my animal spirits have, at times, 
been very low. My mother is almost confined 
to her bed, and my father to his chair ; and I 
am not able to do much to help them : yet I 
can praise the Lord ; for he has some end to 
accomplish by these things, which nothing else 
would so well effect. May he give us all a 
spirit of resignation ! I have sometimes had 
such a sense of the tender sympathy of the Sa- 
viour with his afflicted members, as I think I 
never had before." 

In March, she says, "Mr. Wilson, the vicar, 
administered the sacrament to my dying father, 
who seemed much refreshed by partaking of 
those holy mysteries." Again : — " Last Tues- 
day, April 18th, my beloved parent w r as deliv- 
ered from his sufferings. Angels carried him 
into Abraham's bosom. He was for some time 
speechless ; but his countenance manifested the 
happiness of his soul. Though he had lived 
an humble mourner, he died a triumphant be 
liever, declaring that he rejoiced in the great 
salvation of God, and that he felt the Redeemer 
to be unspeakably precious." 

The day after Mr. Ritchie's decease, Mr* 



86 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

Wesley came to Otley ; and in his Journal thus 
writes : — 

»< April 19th, I went to Otley, but found Mr. 
Ritchie dead before I came : but he had first 
witnessed a good confession. On one telling 
him, 'You will soon be better,' he replied, 'I 
cannot be better ; for I have the love of God 
in my heart. I am happy, — happy, — happy in 
his love !' Mr. Wilson, the vicar, after a lit- 
tle hesitation, consented that I should preach 
his funeral sermon : this I did to-day. The 
text he had chosen was, ' To you that believe 
he is precious.' Perhaps such a congregation 
had hardly been in Otley church before. Surely 
the right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty 
things to pass !" 

The loss of a revered and tender parent 
could not but be severely felt by an affectionate 
and pious child. Such bereavements, which 
break the earliest and most hallowed ties of na- 
ture, rend the heart with inexpressible distress. 
Yet even for the orphan there is sacred conso- 
lation in that promise, " When my father and 
my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take 
me up." In the case of Miss Ritchie it was 
abundantly fulfilled. She had felt the consola- 
tion derived from Divine sympathy. She was 
favoured also with the sympathy of invaluable 
Christian friends. The following extract from 
a letter written to her by Lady Maxwell will 
afford evidence of this, as well as of the early 
date of Miss Ritchie's friendship with this emi- 
nent and truly pious lady ;— 



MEMOIR OP MRS. MORTIMER. 87 

" Edinburgh, April, 1780. 
***** 

" Were it not a persuasion, that every thing 
which befalls the children of God is either by 
the express or permissive will of their heavenly 
Father, and as such is intended for their present 
and future good, I would regret, dear madam, 
the distress you have had in your family. Na- 
ture must feel on these occasions : unreproved, 
she may drop a tear for her own sorrows, and 
those of others, while the mind is kept in per- 
fect peace and constant resignation to the Di- 
vine will. This you have proved, and, I am 
glad to hear, have also greatly profited by the 
rod. It is a high privilege * to glorify God in 
the fires.' He has done much for you ; and 
will, I hope, daily do more ; and keep you con- 
stantly pressing on, sinking into all the depths 
of humble love, and rising to all the heights of 
Christian confidence. And, after all, it is but 
a small taste of Divine love we can bear here. 
While in the body our capacities are very lim- 
ited, our attainments small, our life but in era- 
bryo. Blessed be God for the glorious prospect 
he has opened beyond the grave, when ' our 
vile bodies shall be fashioned like unto his glo- 
rious body!' We shall then know as. we are 
known ; we shall see God and live ; we shall 
behold our victorious Redeemer. Animated 
with this blessed, this soul-elevating, prospect, 
with what holy indifference may we view all 
that the world calls great and good ! How 
sweet the liberty those enjoy whose hearts are 



88 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

free, and disengaged from all below ! If we 
have tasted of this liberty, how great the mer- 
cy [ what thanks, what praise, are due I And 
how great our encouragement to press forward I 
With best wishes for your spiritual prosperity, 
believe me, dear madam, in the best of bonds, 
"Your affectionate friend, 

" D. Maxwell." 

The following expressions of the early, ten- 
der, and affectionate regard of a no less valua- 
ble and still surviving friend, cannot be perused 
without interest and instruction : — 

" Wotton-under-Edge, April, 1781. 

" My beloved Friend, — Before I received 
your letter, my mind was brought into the per- 
fect calm of resignation. I felt willing to re- 
turn the valued loan I had received to Him who 
gave it ; and it seemed to me, that without 
pain I could have heard the account of your 
departure. I was willing, if it was your Fa- 
ther's will, we should meet no more on earth. 
And this view reconciled me to it; namely, a 
beholding Him as the universal Spirit, filling: 
and pervading all things, and working in each 
that which was effectual to the edification of 
the whole. I saw it was well fitting that he 

>uld act by and in what means he saw good ; 
$hat his children had a stable rejoicing in their 
propriety in him. Here was their common 
treasure ; their union with each other was in- 
dissoluble, because in Him ; therefore, death 
parted not, but prepared a better meeting-place, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 89 

or, at least, ushered into it. I had mourned to 
lose you here, on account of the help I looked 
for through you ; and which I could not have, 
should you be removed from this world. But 
I saw, that God could minister that help by any 
medium, though I saw none so likely. And 
should I choose the cup I would drink out of 7 
Or would it not be enough, if the water of life 
was given me ? But your letter, my beloved 
friend, seems to encourage my hope of your 
longer stay ; a stay truly desirable, because 
the choice of indulgent Wisdom. 

" Mr. Wesley writes me word, that he wishes 
you to husband the little strength you have, 
more than you do. The Lord direct you in 
all things. Yours, in closest bond, 

" Elizabeth M. Morgan." 

This accomplished lady has been long better 
known by her matrimonial than by her paren- 
tal name. She surrendered that of Morgan 
on her marriage with Eli Bates, Esquire, a 
gentleman well known in the literary and phi- 
losophic world : and it is a pleasing though 
somewhat singular fact, that, amidst all the 
mutabilities of this changeful scene, the friend- 
ship, commenced thus early, continued unaba- 
ted till the close of life. That it was a source 
of mutual pleasure and improvement, the pro- 
gress of the present work will show. 

Through long and indispensable attention 
to the duties of filial piety and affection, Miss 
Ritchie's complaints had again assumed so 



90 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

alarming an appearance, that her medical at- 
tendants considered her removal to the Hot 
Wells at Bristol, as a step absolutely necessary 
to be taken immediately. In company with 
two friends, she therefore set out as soon as 
possible after the funeral of her father ; and 
making a tour through Leeds, Sheffield, Derby, 
Birmingham, Worcester, and Stroud, (at all 
which places she was welcomed by kind friends,) 
she came at length to Bristol, and thence to 
the Hot Wells, where she fixed her residence 
at the Rock-house. Here she found every 
thing to her mind ; having much opportunity 
for retirement, which was so congenial to her 
devout spirit, and deriving from the use of the 
waters considerable benefit to her health. The 
recollection of the scenes through which she 
had passed softened but did not overwhelm her 
spirits, which had been severely agitated and 
affected by her recent loss. The sorrowful, 
circumstances, under which she found herself 
obliged to leave her widowed parent, were, 
however, painfully remembered : and in May, 
she thus writes to a friend : " Yesterday, I 
found much nearness to my dear mother : surely 
I never knew before how much I loved her. 
Lord bless her, and keep her from being over- 
charged with sorrow, either on my dear father's 
account, or on my own ! I felt much affection 
toward him, and his memory seemed afresh 
endeared to me." 

How interesting are those sympathies which 
link spirits to each other, and which neither 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 91 

time, nor death, nor distance, can dissolve ! 
Surely those whom bonds so strong and so ten- 
der have united on earth, shall recognize, and 
love, and rejoice in holy association with each 
other throughout eternity. 

After an absence of eight months, during 
which time she visited many places, and form- 
ed new and valuable connections, she returned 
to Otley, still infirm in health, but prospering 
in those higher interests which are exempt 
from dissolution and decay. Shortly after her 
return she says, " My soul has been filled with 
gratitude to God, on thinking of the love he 
has manifested toward me. I feel him near 
to defend, comfort, and sustain. Lord, in- 
crease my faith, and make me more deeply 
spiritual !" 

February 2nd, 1784, she writes : — " I bless 
God, that I ever breathed the vital air, and was 
created capable of knowing, loving, and enjoy- 
ing him. To him I surrender myself unre- 
servedly, to do with and for me as seems best 
to himself. I was yesterday filled with thank- 
fulness, while reading my former journal, to 
feel the difference in my present experience 
from what it was at that time. Then I groan- 
ed beneath the remains of the carnal mind. 
Pride, self-will, and unbelief, often interrupted 
my peace : now it flows as a river ; my Lord 
has gained a victory over one of the most re- 
bellious hearts that ever felt his grace. To his 
name be all the glory ! 

" March, 1785. — A review of past mercies 



92 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

fills rac with thankfulness. 1 am an unprofit- 
able servant ; but the love of my adorable Lord 
is without bottom or shore. To the glory of 
his name, I am still saved. My weakness is 
inexpressible : so also is my Saviour's love. I 
walk in blessed liberty ; the kingdom of heaven 
is opened in my heart ; and, in the midst of a 
thousand snares, and multiplied suggestions 
from the adversary, I am kept by the mighty 
power of God, and feel a clear evidence that 
Jesus saves to the uttermost." 

In a letter to a friend she thus writes : — 

" Let our eye of faith ' behold the Lamb of 
God which taketh away the sin of the world ;' 
who, when he had paid our dreadful debt, * en- 
tered into the heavens, now to appear in the 
presence of God for us.' If we had more faith, 
we should have more communion with our 
blessed Lord in his mediatorial office ; and, by 
beholding Him as praying to the Father to 
send the promised Comforter, how would our 
expectations of receiving more abundant power 
from on high be increased ! We should not 
conceive of the Father as unwilling to bless us ; 
but we should see the adorable Saviour, by his 
intercession, obtaining for us all that fulness of 
the Spirit which the believer is capable of re- 
ceiving ; and our souls would feel the ripening 
influences of the uncreated Sun, and by grace 
be fully prepared for glory." 

In the enjoyment of this deep and abiding 
peace with God, through Jesus Christ, whom 



MEMOIR OF MRS, MORTIMER. 93 

she felt to be her M wisdom, righteousness, sanc- 
tification, and redemption," she perseveringly 
pursued that upward path which leads to higher 
knowledge, and increasing holiness. 



CHAPTER III. 

" From all its' emanations, the sun itself receives no 
advantage but the honour of doing benefits ; so doth 
the almighty Father of all his creatures : he sends 
forth his blessings upon us, that we, by using them 
aright, should make ourselves capable of greater." — 
Jeremy Taylor. 

After the decease of her beloved father, 
and the partial restoration of her health, a new 
and unpremeditated sphere of duty seemed to 
be opened to the subject of these memoirs ; 
and this portion of her life may be said to con- 
stitute a second period in her history. Fa- 
voured in no common measure with the personal 
experience of the Holy Spirit's operations on 
the heart, she was peculiarly prepared for use- 
fulness, in the instruction of the ignorant, in 
ministering consolation to the mourner, in 
teaching the way of faith more perfectly, or in 
enkindling to a brighter and a purer lustre, in 
the hearts of others, the flame of love and zeal 
which burned with so much constancy and fer- 
vour in her own. 

As by the grace of God she was thus quali- 
fied, so did his Providence appear to indicate, 
that an enlarged engagement in these exercises 



94 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

was her special call. Her intimacy with the 
venerable Wesley, and consequent introduction 
to the extensive circle of his friends, procured 
for her unusual facilities, and gave proportion- 
able sanction to her efforts in her Master's 
cause. From the present period, therefore, to 
the era of her marriage, she was chiefly occu- 
pied in visiting, at the solicitations of her large 
connections, their several societies and neigh- 
bourhoods, for purposes of spiritual improve- 
ment ; nor was she less acceptable in the do- 
mestic circle, where she diffused an animating 
pleasure, by her amiable and gentle manners, 
and by her cheerful and intelligent conver- 
sation. 

The detail of these movements constitutes 
the principal material of her journal through 
various subsequent years ; connecting also the 
most gratifying statements as to her stability 
and progress in the inward life of grace. Upon 
both these subjects, her letters to her venerable 
correspondent likewise speak at large. Her 
spiritual prosperity may be inferred from the 
communication following : — 

" Otley, August loth, 1782. 
" Rev. and Dear Sir : — Glory be to my 
Lord ! he still holds my soul in second life, and 
gives me to feel that my treasure and my heart 
are in heaven. My soul enjoys sweet com- 
munion with the holy Trinity, and is deeply 
bumbled on account of its own unworthiness. 
But, blessed be my adorable Saviour, I see, by 



• MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 95 

faith, whence all my blessings flow : they are 
all conveyed to me through his blood. 

" How good is our God ! Mercies on every 
hand close me round, and command my liveliest 
gratitude. I rejoice in the hope, ere long, of 
praising my Saviour in nobler strains abo^e ; 
for I am not more dissatisfied with any thing 
than my power to bring glory to his name. 
My capacity to comprehend the love of God 
seems so limited, and my spirit so imprisoned, 
while confined in a tenement of clay, that 1 
almost long for enlargement ; when my freed 
soul shall, with unutterable delight, range the 
illimitable plains of Jehovah's kingdom, con- 
verse with kindred angels, and, as a separate 
spirit, adore and love. But still, let my Fa- 
ther's will be done ! I would not wish to burst 
the shell, and spring to life, a moment sooner 
than infinite Wisdom sees good. His will is 
my rest ; may I improve my added moments as 
he means I should ! and then life lengthened 
will be glory increased. You ask, whether I 
am fully employed for a good Master 1 When 
I would attempt to answer, my spirit sinks into 
confusion at his adorable feet, conscious how 
little I am capable of doing for him. Thus 
far, however, I can say, In all I do his glory is 
my aim; and so graciously does he deal with 
me, thaf, when I am called to serve with Mar- 
tha's hands, I feel a Mary's heart ; and, when 
engaged more immediately in his blessed ser- 
vice, it is my delight. I remain, Rev. and dear 
sir, your unworthy child, E. Ritchie." 



96 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

la 1784, and 1783, Mr. Wesley thus writes : 

11 1 have often been musing upon this, — why 
the generality of Christians, even those who 
really are such, are less zealous and less active 
for God when they are middle-aged, than they 
were when young. May we not draw an an- 
swer to this question from that declaration of 
our Lord, (no less than eight times repeated by 
the evangelists,) 'To him that hath,' (uses what 
he hath,) * shall be given ; but from him that 
hath not, shall be taken away that he hath V 
A measure of zeal and activity is given to every 
one, when he finds peace with God. If he 
earnestly and diligently uses these talents, they 
will be increased ; but if he ceases (yea, inter- 
mits) to do good, he insensibly loses both the 
will and the power. So that there is no pos- 
sible way to retain those gifts but to use them 
to the uttermost. Let this declension never 
take place in my dear friend ! Never abate 
any thing of your diligence in doing good. 
Sometimes, indeed, the feeble body sinks under 
you : but when you do all you can, you do 
enough. Yours, J. Wesley." 

" It is doubtless the will of our Lord, that we 
should be guided by our reason, as far as it can 
go. But in many cases it gives us very little 
light, and in others none at all. In all cases 
it cannot guide us right, but in subordination 
to the unction of the Holy One. So that in 
all our ways we are to acknowledge him, and 
he will direct our paths. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 97 

" I do not remember to have heard or read 
any thing like my own experience. Almost 
ever since I can remember, I have been led in 
a peculiar way. I go on in an even line, being 
very little raised at one time, or depressed at 
another. Count Zinzendorf observes, ' There 
are three different ways wherein it pleases God 
to lead his people. Some are guided, almost 
in every instance, by apposite texts of Scrip- 
ture ; others see a clear and plain reason for 
every thing they are to do ; and yet others are 
led, not so much by Scripture and reason, as 
by particular impressions.' I am very rarely 
led by impressions, but generally by reason and 
Scripture : I see abundantly more than I feel. 
I want to feel more love and zeal for God. 
My very dear friend, adieu ! 

"J. Wesley." 

By her peculiar and extended sphere of duty, 
she became associated in her progress with a 
more than usual number of sensible and pious 
persons ; in intercourse with whom this season 
of her life was chiefly passed. While, there- 
fore, notices of these distinguished individuals 
are essentially connected with her story, they 
form a source of new and varied interest, alike 
instructive and agreeable ; and if by friendships 
judgment may be formed of character, an in- 
ference highly honourable to Miss Ritchie must 
in this respect be drawn. 

By Miss Bosanquet she had been kindly no- 
ticed very early in her Christian course, and 
7 



98 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

has often mentioned her pleasant and profita- 
ble visits to Cross-Hall. Time matured their 
acquaintance into intimacy ; and on the mar- 
riage of this lady to the pious and devoted Mr. 
Fletcher, vicar of Madeley, — a name associa- 
ted with whatever in religion is sublime, or 
elevated, or intense, or holy,- — she was privi- 
leged with this invaluable accession to the 
number of hertfriends. Such friendships are, 
indeed, responsibilities ; they are privileges of 
no common value ; the influence of spirits of 
this lofty order, acting upon every kindred 
sympathy, possesses a transforming power. 
Stimulated by the admiration of exalted excel- 
lence, a holy emulation animates the mind ; the 
oracles of wisdom, emanating from the voice 
of love, engage the heart's affections ; and un- 
constrained and frequent intercourse with living 
models of superior intellect and goodness, while 
it refreshes and expands the soul, becomes the 
means of propagating, by reflection, the ardours 
of a glowing piety, the power of exemplary 
virtue, and the light of heavenly truth. 

Miss Ritchie was most thankfully sensible 
of the advantages which she in this respect 
enjoyed, and in the present instance knew how 
to prize her privilege. Mr. Fletcher she re- 
garded with peculiar veneration, and ever che- 
rished an unabated and affectionate esteem for 
his inestimable wife. 

Being present as a favoured guest on the 
occasion of their nuptials, she has left an inte- 
resting record of the solemnities of that im- 



ME3I0IR OF MRS. MORTMER. 99 

portant day. She writes: "November 12th, 
1781. 1 can truly say, I have been at one 
Christian wedding ; Jesus was invited, and he 
was at our Caiia. We reached Cross- Hall 
before family prayer. Mr. Fletcher was dress- 
ed in his canonicals ; and, after giving out one 
of Mr. Charles Wesley's marriage-hymns, he 
read the 7th, 8th, and 9th verses of the 19th 
chapter of Revelations, and spoke from them 
in such a manner as greatly tended to spiritu- 
alize the solemnities of the day. On our way 
to the church, which was nearly two miles 
distant, (Batley,) he spoke of the mystery 
couched under marriage, namely, the union be- 
tween Christ and the church. They were 
married in the face of the congregation, the 
doors were thrown open, and every one came 
in that would. We then returned home, and 
spent a considerable time in singing and prayer 
with their own family. Nearly twenty friends 
were present. The time after dinner, (which 
was a spiritual meal as well as a natural one,) 
was chiefly spent in prayer and conversation. 
Mr. Valton preached in the evening from these 
most suitable w r ords : ' What shall I render 
unto the Lord for all his benefits V There 
seemed, after preaching, to be a pleasing con- 
test among us, by whom the largest debt of 
praise was due. Mr. Fletcher, in the course 
of conversation some days afterward, said, 
* Five-and-twenty years ago, when I first saw 
my' dear wife, I thought if I ever married she 
would be the person of my choice ; but her 

LOfC. 



100 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

large fortune was in the way, she was too rich 
for me, and I therefore strove to banish every 
thought of the kind.' " 

The piety and holiness of this devoted min- 
ister of Christ awakened in Miss R.'s mind no 
common interest ; her sympathies were in ac- 
cordance with the universal feeling of regard 
and admiration excited by his lofty, spiritual, 
and almost seraphic character. The inter- 
course, although occasional, which she enjoyed 
with so sublime a spirit, enkindled in her mind 
more fervent aspirations after high attainments, 
and exhibited to her imitation a living model 
of the zeal, and love, and meekness, and humi- 
lity, that constitute the mind of Christ. 

In her journal, June 26th, 1784, Miss Ritchie 
writes : — "On Saturday we came to Leeds, 
where my spirit was much refreshed by the 
sight of my dear old friends, Mr. and Mrs. 
Fletcher. Mr. Fletcher preached on Sunday 
morning, and Mr. Wesley in the evening : they 
were both solemn and animating occasions. 

" July 16th. — Mr. and Mrs. Fletcher visited 
Otley, I was truly blessed and edified by their 
society. Our house was full of company, and 
my health very indifferent : but the Lord does 
all things well ; he gives me entire resignation 
to his will." 

This was probably the last time she enjoyed 
the privilege of intercourse with her dis- 
tinguished friend. In August of the following 
year, her journal states, — " I have received a 
few lines from Mrs. Crosby, who mentions that 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 101 

a report has reached Leeds of the death of Mr. 
Fletcher, which she hopes is not correct, and 
requests my prayers in behalf of dear Mrs. 
Fletcher. If 1 may judge from my own feel- 
ings, it is but too true. I went to the Lord, 
but could only pray for her and the Church. 
My spirit felt tender sympathy with my dear 
afflicted friend ; but the Lord can support her, 
and raise up an Elisha to fill the place, and 
catch the mantle of our translated Elijah. Last 
night confirmed the doleful truth : — that bright 
and shining light no longer illumines our he- 
misphere ; he is gone to that glory which had 
so powerfully transformed his spirit into the 
image of his blessed Master. When I found 
it really was so, with David * I became dumb : 
I opened not my mouth, because God had done 
it.' Infinite wisdom cannot err ; but when I 
think of what my dear friend will feel, of the 
Church's and of my own loss, and also of my 
small improvement of the invaluable blessing 
of such a Christian friend, as well as of the 
grief it will occasion to dear Mr. Wesley, my 
tears freely flow. I think my Lord will not 
reprove my sorrow ; it draws me upward ; I 
feel a new attraction toward heaven. While 
memory recalls the form of the departed ; his 
words, his actions, his heavenly looks, all seem 
to say, « Follow me, as I have followed Christ ; 
then shall you also behold that glory to which 
I have now attained.' 

" I wrote, as well as I could, to my dear af- 
flicted friend, and offered her any assistance it 



102 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER, 

might be in my power to render. — Lord, make 
me more fully ready for thine appearing ! My 
spirit, I am deeply sensible, may take a much 
brighter polish ; and thereby, as a purer 
mirror, reflect the glory of my Lord to all 
eternity. 

" September 9th. — This morning's post 
brought me a letter from dear Mrs. Fletcher ; 
wherein she says, < God orders all. The great 
lesson I want to learn, is perfect resignation ; 
which he has taken the most effectual means 
to teach me, and I trust it will answer his wise 
design.' " 

How animating are the discoveries made by 
Divine revelation ! Truly, Christians sorrow 
not as those without hope. With what solemn 
and elevated pleasure have these devotedly at- 
tached friends renewed their intercourse in that 
world, where 

" Glorified spirits by sight 

Converse in their holy abode, 
As stars in the firmament bright, 
And pure as the angels of God !" 

The following letter from Mr. Charles Wes- 
ley to Mrs. Fletcher was found among Mrs. 
Mortimer's papers. It is too interesting in all 
its connections to require any apology for its 
introduction here. It affords a beautiful speci- 
men of the venerable writer's powers in ex- 
temporaneous composition, as well as a sublime 
example of sacramental devotion, faith, and 
charity. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 103 

"Marybone, May 2Uh, 1785. 
" Mr Dear Sister, — If you love Mr. 
Fletcher, you should love the poor Methodists : 
for to their prayers you owe him, and he you. 
I found words, and the people faith, while we 
heard, at Bristol, that our friend was just de- 
parting. After the sacrament we sung the 
following hymn, which you have^ the best 
right to :— 

A PRAYER, 

For the Rev. John Fletcher, June 30, 1776 

Jesus, thy feeble servant see ; 
Sick is the man beloved by thee ; 

Thy name to magnify, 
To spread thy Gospel truths again, 
His precious soul in life detain, 

Nor suffer him to die. 

The ferment prayer thou oft hast heard, 
Thy mighty arm in mercy bared, 

Thy wonder-working power 
Appcar'd in all thy people's sight, 
And stopp'd the spirit in its night, 

And bade the grave restore. 

In faith we ask a fresh reprieve ; 
Frequent in deaths, he still shall live, 

If thou pronounce the word ; 
Shall spend for thee his strength renew'd, 
Witness of thy all-cleansing blood, 

Forerunner of his Lord. 

The Spirit that raised thee from the dead, 
Be in its quick'ning virtue shed 

His mortal flesh to raise ; 
To consecrate thy human shrine, 
And fill with energy Divine 

The minister of grace. 



104 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

Body and soul at. once revive ; 

The prayer of faith, in which we strive, 

So shall we all proclaim, 
According to thy gracious will, 
Omnipotent the sick to heal, 

In every age the same. 

" Since his resurrection you have been com- 
manded to give him something to eat ; and 
from none but you would he receive it ; such 
was his obstinacy, till love overcame it. You 
aave been the instrument of adding some years 
to his valuable !ife. Remember, for the short 
time that I shall want your prayers, my dear 
friend, your old faithful servant, 

" C. Wesley." 

To Mr. Fletcher, on the same sheet, he 
adds : — 

" My Very Dear Brother, — You ought to 
have paid the last office, instead of me, to our 
most venerable archbishop at Shoreham.* On 
Sunday I deposited the sacred ashes in his 
partner's grave, and preached twice. His 
death was such as his life promised : for many 
years he breathed the pure spirit of love. The 
survivor who follows him nearest is longo jprox- 
imus intervallo. 

" A fortnight ago I preached the condemned 
sermon to above twenty criminals. Every one 
of them, I have good grounds to believe, died 
penitent. Twenty more must die next week. 

" Sally presents her duty and love : the rest 

* Their common friend and revered counsellor, the 
Rev. Vincent Perronet, vicar of Shoreham. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 105 

join. Direct to me in Marybone, and help me 
to depart in peace." 

A character of simple and ingenuous confi- 
dence in God appears in the ensuing observa- 
tions of Miss Ritchie, which occur under the 
date of March, 17S6 : — "My time has lately 
been fully employed ; and though at some sea- 
sons I have been closely tried, yet the Lord has 
graciously screened me from the heat of the 
day ; and I have found constant repose in him. 
While asking direction from above, respecting 
my providential course, that often-applied word 
was given me, ' I will guide thee by mine eye.' 
Immediately I thought, How needful is it that 
my eye should ever meet the eye of God, in 
order that I may feel its blessed guidance ! 
Once I watched a creature's eye ; and had so 
far gained a power to read its language, that, 
by the turn of Mrs. H.'s eye, I knew her will, 
better than some who had heard her words. 
Thus will I watch my Lord's eye. His provi- 
dence shall point out my way, and his Spirit 
guide me, according to that sacred rule, his 
holy word." 

Shortly after this, her path was opened to 
visit her bereaved friend, Mrs. Fletcher. 
Meeting at Birmingham with Mr. Wesley, he 
invited her to accompany him to Madeley. 
She thankfully embraced the opportunity ; and 
thus records her feelings on her arrival at the 
vicarage : — " My mind was solemnly affected 
when I entered the house : but more so when 
I saw my dear afflicted friend. The Lord 



108 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

sanctified our meeting, and made it a profitable 
season. Mr. Wesley preached on Sunday, 
from the commencement of Revelations xiv ; 
and so delineated the character of the dear de- 
parted saint, as greatly to affect me, and many 
others ; whose weeping eyes and sympathizing 
looks showed how greatly they revered and 
loved the memory of their departed pastor. " 

March 31st, 1786, Miss Ritchie records the 
following circumstance : — ■" This day I receiv- 
ed a letter from a gentleman I had seen at 
Birmingham, who writes to me on the subject 
of marriage. He is a sensible good man, and, 
as to outward things, much beyond .what I 
have any right to expect. He was converted 
to God in the same year that I was ; and has 
been steady from that time to the present. He 
is gunsmith to his majesty ; is in very affluent 
circumstances ; and freely tells me he wants 
me to help him to live to God. After laying 
the matter before the Lord in prayer, I saw it 
my duty to decline his offer. It is true, that 
one talent, of which I often now feel the want, 
would be put into my hands ; but my time 
would not be all at liberty for the Lord's ser- 
vice. Nor do I feel that particular conviction 
from God, without which I cannot act in an 
affair of this kind. What my Lord may call 
me to in future, I know not : I would move at 
his beck, as the leaf before the wind ; but, at 
present. I have no intimation that this is his 
will concerning me. I do not mean, that I 
expect a particular revelation to be, made to 



MEMOIR OF MRS. 3IORTIMER 107 

me on the subject ; (although this, I believe, is 
sometimes given;) but I think, that, whenever 
I am called to change my situation, it will 
plainly appear to my understanding, that by 
such a change I shall be likely to become more 
holy and more useful. Then my will would 
choose, and my affections embrace, it as the 
will of God. I see time to be such a moment, 
that nothing appears worth a thought that will 
not render me capable of a fuller enjoyment of 
him. I wrote to Mr. M. a civil, but full refu- 
sal, as I think it very wrong to keep a person 
in suspense on any such occasions. It is a 
token of respect which merits all the regard 
that can consistently be shown." 

Less than prophetic prescience might, per- 
haps, discover, that perseverance in this suit 
would win the prize at length. 

After spending some time in profitable inter- 
course with her friend, Miss Ritchie accepted 
an invitation to visit Ireland ; on which occa- 
sion she says, " So plainly did the cloud move 
toward Dublin, that I never took a journey in 
my life with stronger assurance of my being 
in the very way w 7 herein the Lord would have 
me to go." She travelled through North 
Wales ; and says, " Part of this country is beau- 
tifully pleasant. The woods, mountains, val- 
leys, and winding rivers, that diversify the 
scene, have afforded me matter of praise ; and 
have drawn out my heart in adoration of the 
great Origin of beauty. Rural scenery always 
does me good ; and, although this has been, 



103 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

upon the whole, a day of trial, yet I have seen 
God in all things, and have ascended from earth 
to heaven." 

Miss Ritchie was affectionately received by 
her friends in Dublin ; and, while among them, 
was actively employed in spiritual engage- 
ments, from which they, as well as herself, ap- 
pear to have derived much benefit. " I am 
often," she says, " greatly straitened for time ; 
my engagements multiply so fast, as to be al- 
most too much for my strength ; but the Lord 
enables me to live under the shadow of his 
wing, and keeps me in constant peace." After 
a visit of three months, she returned, express- 
ing great thankfulness to God, and also to her 
friends, for their hospitality and kindness. 

She again spent some time at Madeley ; and, 
while there, was seriously attacked with fever, 
the probable result of great exertions, which 
had too much excited both her physical and 
mental powers. By Mrs. Fletcher's kind at- 
tentions, and the blessing of her heavenly Fa- 
ther, she at length so far recovered as to be 
able to return to Otley ; and, on reaching home, 
observes, " This journey has been marked with 
mercies. By the blessing of my Saviour, and 
the kindness of my friends, I am now restored 
nearly to my usual health." 

To a friend she writes, shortly afterward, 
" O my dear friend ! dying views are just views. 
We see the shadows of time in a true point of 
light, when eternity is about to open upon us. 
May you and I improve the frequent calls 



"MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 100 

given us by infinite Love ; and may every sig- 
nal that we shall shortly leave this vain world, 
make us abundantly more like those who seek 
a country out of sight !" 

Believing that "to lead a pilgrim's life" was, 
at this time, her providential call, as soon as 
health and circumstances permitted, she re- 
sumed her travels ; and at Hull, Stockport, 
Manchester, and other places, visited her nu- 
merous friends, exerting every where a holy 
influence, and seeking to promote the spiritual 
and everlasting interests of those whose hospi- 
tality and friendship she so largely shared. 
Yet while occupying this extensive sphere, she 
often sighed for her beloved retirement, and 
says, " I resignedly long for more leisure. I 
never remember to have seen so many sick 
people as at Hull. Visiting these, associating 
with my friends, and attending the means of 
grace, leave me less time in private than I 
could wish. But all is right that my Lord per- 
mits. I would not choose even my own spi- 
ritual employments : to fall in with the order 
of God, is more my business than any thing 
else." 

Of these engagements Miss Ritchie writes 
as follows : — 

"Oiley, November 11th, 1782. 

" Will my Rev. and dear father excuse my 

seeming negligence 1 While I was from home, 

the multiplicity of my engagements among the 

people, wherever I went, left me no time for 



110 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

writing ; but, now that I am again settled in 
my peaceful dwelling, I will endeavour to give 
a little account of the many mercies bestowed 
on me and others during my late journey. 

" I found, as you observed, at Liverpool, a 
new scene opened to me. For some years my 
lot has not been cast so much among worldly 
people as at that place : but, blessed be God, 
he kept me separate in spirit from those that 
knew him not ! Never did I feel more love 
and pity for those who were entangled in the 
allurements of this vain world ; or more thank- 
fulness to that God whose gracious love had 
set my spirit free. As to our own people there, 
they are very friendly and kind. 

" At Macclesfield I found a happy, lively 
people ; and was greatly refreshed among them. 
I spent a few days with our dear friends, Mr. 
and Mrs. Mayer, at Portwood, where I was 
much humbled and richly comforted. The 
Stockport society love the whole truth ; but, as 
yet, few of them enjoy the full liberty of the 
Gospel. At Bolton, I had a good time : the 
Lord blessed me in my own soul, and gave his 
blessing to the people. 

" O that the love which is the fulfilling of the 
law may every where prevail ! I rejoice in the 
prosperity of others ; and, blessed be God, I 
daily rejoice in Him whose love is without 
measure or end. Never was my spirit more 
disengaged from all beneath ; and though, at 
times, I deeply feel how much more fully I might 
have improved all my mercies, yet I am kept 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. Ill 

from discouragement by the reviving presence 
of my Lord, who by his Spirit points out and 
discovers this to me, with inexpressible tender- 
ness. I see such wisdom, such love in all his 
dealings with me, as sinks me into the dust, 
and fills my heart with grateful praise. 

" May all blessings be poured from on high 
upon my dear and much-loved father! I am, 
my dear sir, your truly affectionate, though 
unworthy child, 

"E. Ritchie." 

The course of Christian activity in which 
Miss Ritchie moved, at this time, must be re- 
garded as a special designation of Divine Pro- 
vidence. Talents for peculiar usefulness had 
been committed to her ; and facilities for the 
employment of them were afforded by the eco- 
nomy of that religious body with which she 
was in intimate connection ; as well as by the 
many influential friendships which, in various 
quarters, she had formed. While, therefore, 
what appeared to be her line of duty is not 
strictly exemplary, yet her portrait could not 
be correctly drawn without adverting to this 
more conspicuous season of her eminently use- 
ful life : nor can the characters with whom she 
was associated pass in review before the mind, 
without exciting thoughts of prayerful and af- 
fecting interest. They were orbs of light, 
which even yet reflect a hallow T ed and benign 
effulgence on the Church. Placed, by peculiar 
circumstances, in a sphere which was enlarged 



112 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

beyond the pale of ordinary Christian duty ; 
and participating largely of that rich spiritual 
influence which attends revivals of religion in 
their earliest periods ; they seemed to breathe 
an atmosphere more subtle, penetrating, and 
elastic, than that inhaled by persons who live 
less in commerce with unearthly things. Spi- 
rits of this order the Holy Ghost prepares and 
disciplines for special purposes ; for seasons 
whose emergency the usual tone of zealous 
feeling is too low to reach ; for ministries, like 
that entrusted to the prophet, which demand 
the touch of fire ; for specimens of that intense 
vitality which may be communicated by the 
quickening Spirit, to the soul once dead in 
trespasses and sins. Such, realizing the idea 
in the ardent mind of the apostle,* run a shin- 
ing course ; and, stimulating others, by their 
holy zeal as well as blameless piety, to imitate 
their bright career, seem designated to hold 

* Phil. ii. 15, 16. That St. Paul, who so often il- 
lustrates his subjects by allusion to the Grecian games, 
has here a reference to the foot-race, run with lighted 
torches, appears highly probable. 

" The feast of the P.inathenaea was celebrated at 
Athens, in honour of Minerva. On the morning of 
the first day a race was run on foot, in which each of 
the runners carried a lighted torch in his hand, which 
they exchanged continually, without interrupting the 
race. The first that came to the goal without having 
put out his torch carried the priz:?." — Rollin's Ancient 
History. 

"On the first d ay there was a race with torches, 
wherein first footmen, and afterward horsemen, con- 
tended." — Potter's Grecian Antiquities. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTI3IER. 113 

forth the word of life, and to reflect a holy 
splendour on the Church and on the world. 

The great religious revival of the last cen- 
tury produced in Britain no ordinary number 
of these fervent, hallowed, and devoted spirits, 
who, entering on the course with an unflinch- 
ing courage, bore aloft the torch of truth, and 
held it with a cautious, steadfast, persevering 
hand. Communicating and receiving light, 
they ran their race with patience, and presented 
at the goal the unextinguished tokens of their 
victory. Many eyes were fixed upon them in 
their progress. A train of mild and mellow 
splendour tracks the path through which they 
passed. Their peculiar post of duty, in the 
Master's service, all his followers are not called 
to fill ; yet each may emulate the holy vigour 
of their faith, and learn, from their example, 
the art of living, not for selfish objects merely, 
but for the glory of their Saviour, and the bene- 
fit of all to whom their influence shall extend. 

In May, 1788, Mr. Wesley visited York- 
shire ; and Miss Ritchie enjoyed many oppor- 
tunities of intercourse with her venerable 
friend. After his departure, the following ob- 
servations occur in her journal : — 

" Mr. Wesley left us early this morning, and 
pursued his way to Scotland. I felt much 
thankfulness for the many gracious opportu- 
nities afforded me. O that I may learn better 
to improve what my God, in his love bestows ! 
My many interviews with my dear father, at 
S 



114 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

this time, have put a fresh edge on the desire 
of my spirit after that communion with my 
Lord, which will make me what he would have 
me to he. 

" Mr. Wesley has been advising me to em- 
brace some providential openings to visit our 
friends in London ; and I feel much inclined 
to do so, from a fear that my dear father should 
not be lent to us much longer. I should es- 
teem it a favour to spend a winter in London 
while he lives ; and therefore mean, with my 
Lord's leave, to go in a few weeks." 

In the course of the same month Miss 
Ritchie wrote as follows to Mr. Wesley, from 
Parkgate :— 

"May 28th, 1788. 
" Rev. Sir, — How am I indebted to the Lord 
for the kind concern you show for my welfare f 
Your last letter caused much thankfulness. If 
I may judge of my future by my present feel- 
ings, no situation in life will have any tendency 
to obliterate from my memory a due sense of 
the numerous and unmerited favours which, 
for many years, I have been receiving from you. 
Except I fall from grace, the gratitude which 
I now feel will be permanent ; for I am ready 
to think, that in the - eternal world my spirit 
will enjoy a peculiar union with those to 
whom the love of Jesus united me in sa- 
cred bonds while sojourning here below. 
Glory be to our God for such a friendship as 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 115 

eternity itself shall ripen ! I can never suffi- 
ciently adore the riches of that grace which 
has so brought the powers of my mind under 
obedience to Christ, that other attachments I 
do not feel. 

"I greatly praise the Lord for all that has 
happened to me of late ; and now find the 
sweetness of living in the will of my heavenly 
Father. I am wholly the Lord's ; and to him 
my spirit ever bows. The path wherein I shall 
most glorify God, is my deliberate choice ; and 
whether this shall be by doing or by suffering 
his righteous will, I leave entirely in his hands. 
He keeps me in perfect peace, and gives me 
to drink of the water of life. I daily walk in 
the light of his countenance, and feel my God 
a satisfying portion. He saves me beyond all 
I can ask or think, and will continue to save 
to the very uttermost a soul that comes to him. 
All his dispensations are faithfulness and love. 
Many outward trials he has permitted me lately 
to meet with; but all are sanctified, so that my 
daily crosses only drive me nearer to him. 
This earth, I know, is not my home : I am a 
k stranger and a sojourner here, as all my fathers 
we-re ; but I seek a country out of sight, a city 
in the skies, whose builder and maker is God : 
and sometimes my faith so steadfastly beholds 
the glory that shall be revealed, that lam ready 
to say, ' Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly !' But 
still I rest resigned, and wait my Father's will, 
feeling that it is even good to be here. 

" Help me all you can, dear sir. to improve 



116 MEMOIH OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

the flying moments as they pass, and to redeem 
the present time. 

" I am truly thankful that God inclined you 
to publish the Magazine. Your dear mother's 
letters are excellent indeed ; and it would have 
been a pity if the public had not been favoured 
with them. I trust this work will be a bless- 
ing to thousands and tens of thousands. May 
the Lord reward you for all the unmerited 
favours bestowed on, reverend and dear sir, 
"Yours, E. Ritchie." 

Her purpose to visit the metropolis was 
shortly fulfilled.—" On the 10th of July," she 
writes, " I left my dear Otley friends, and went 
to Kirkstall Forge, in my way to London. 
While preparing for this journey I have felt pe- 
culiar rest and composure of spirit. When at 
prayer with the family, that word was given 
me, < The very hairs of your head are numbered.' 
It inspired me with calm confidence in my 
Lord's preserving care ; I was assured that 
they should have a farther fulfilment than merely 
in relation to the body, if I would but trust in 
him. I felt not only the will but the power to 
do so. Armed with my Saviour's might, I left 
my dear people ; and once more, Abraham-like, 
followed my Lord into an unknown part of the 
vineyard. At Leeds I took sweet counsel with 
a friend ; and on the 17th, at five o'clock in 
the morning, took coach for London, where, 
after a journey of mercies, I arrived about 
twelve the next day. I was kindly received by 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTTMl^R. 117 

my dear friends, Mr. and Mrs. Peard Dicken- 
son, and in the evening supped with Mr. Wes- 
ley. I soon felt myself quite at home. The 
situation is airy ; and Mr. and Mrs. Dickenson 
seem just such friends as I need. We had a 
profitable time during the Conference. Prayer 
was heard and answered in behalf of our ho- 
noured father, who was divinely assisted in the 
performance of his arduous duties. In the 
public ordinances I drank freely of the w r ater 
of life ; and while I heard the truth, I felt it in 
my heart. 

" August 10th. — Mr. Wesley is gone to visit 
the societies in Wales. Since then, one and 
another of our friends, who came to the Con- 
ference, have left us ; but He in whom the 
whole are joined is still here. My spirit lives 
by faith in Christ, and feels him near to save. 

"August 17th. — I called on Miss Thornton,* 
and was much edified by her conversation. She 
is one of those few who walk closely with God. 
I feel much union of spirit with her ; and long 
to learn of her, and of all w r ho pursue the same 
most excellent course, how to gain my calling's 
glorious hope. I went, on the 19th, with Mr. 
and Mrs. Dickenson, to Deptford, where we 
spent two very profitable days, at Mr. Dorn- 
ford's. 

" I have passed a fortnight with my dear 
friends, Mrs. Ford and Miss Owen, at Cam- 
berwell. I felt myself utterly unworthy of the 

* The intimate friend of Mr, Fletcher. 



118 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

love and kindness shown to me. It was for 
thy sake, O Lord ! 

"Last week I spent a little time with Mrs. 
Collinson.* My soul has fed on heavenly 
manna, while we have conversed, and read, and 
prayed together. Her sweet simplicity of spi- 
rit did me good. We strove to help each other 
to draw nearer to our centre ; and, forgetting 
things behind, to take a stronger hold on Is- 
rael's strength. Surely I am more than others 
indebted to my Lord, in being favoured with 
the personal knowledge of so many of the ex- 
cellent of the earth." 

Miss Ritchie's introduction to these and 
other interesting and influential Christian 
friends in the metropolis and its vicinity, ap- 
pears to have afforded her both pleasure and 
improvement. They were the friends of Mr. 
Wesley, and the trophies of his generous and 
unwearied labours in his Master's cause. En- 
joying in an especial manner, the advantage 
of his personal instructions, a proportionate 
conformity in views and principles was but the 
natural result. She, who had studied so ob- 
servantly the same model, felt, therefore, pecu- 
liar sympathy of spirit with her venerable fa- 
ther's chosen friends. In this early intercourse 
was also laid the basis of those friendships which 
were to constitute the social interests of suc- 

* The wife of Mr* John Collinson, of Southwark. 
This lady was one of the early seals to the Wesleyan 
ministry, at Newcastle, and an intimate friend of Mr» 
Wesley. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 119 

ceeding years. The old disciples, it is true, 
had generally " departed from the shadows of 
this world, and received their glorious garments 
from the Lord," before her residence was fixed 
in London. But the younger members of their 
families, whose incipient piety she had hailed 
with smiles of kind encouragement, and whom 
she had cheered onward by her wise and pious 
counsels, remained to share the benefit of her 
matured experience, and the privilege and 
pleasure of her valuable friendship, through a 
course of years. There are periods in the pro- 
gress of life to which the mind adverts with 
feelings of no common interest. Reminis- 
cences, connected with the dawning light and 
life of the immortal spirit, are at once the most 
affecting, solemn, and delightful, that the trea- 
sured stores of memory can supply. 

The following extract from a letter written 
during this visit, will show what she regarded 
as defective in some of her London friends : — 

"February 20th, 1780. 

***** 

" Never did I see true Christian simplicity 
more beautiful than of late. Let us cultivate 
it both toward God and our brethren. I am 
here cast, at times, among some excellent peo- 
ple, who have really what I think I may venture 
to call first-rate understandings, well improved 
by education and proper company ; and with 
a considerable degree of piety ; but for want 
of more of this Christian grace, others are not 



120 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

benefited by them as they ought to be. A few 
of these characters are really aiming to attain 
a simple filial spirit ; but, ah. my friend ! what 
will it cost to break them down 1 Though I 
greatly admire such persons, and must own that 
I love their company ; yet I am often thankful 
for being cast in a different mould ; my natural 
freedom, with all its consequences, is less re- 
pugnant to the life of faith, than all their un- 
profitable reasonings." 

To the same friend she again writes : — 

"I hope you have had a good season at P. 
G. The God of the hills is also the God of 
the valleys. What we need, in order to make 
every place a Bethel, is a sense of our wants, 
and of his willingness to supply them out of the 
riches of his glory, by Christ Jesus. I long, 
my dear sister, for you to lay all your hin- 
derances at the Saviour's feet ; and to let him 
fully save you from your sins. I know that 
your weakness of body exposes you to many 
painful feelings ; but do not those feelings also 
loudly call you to make ready for the Bride- 
groom ? Yes, your heart feels they do ; come, 
then, to the open fountain, and wash away 
your remaining impurities. Faith brings that 
degree of power which you want. The Lord 
help you to take hold on Divine strength ! 
While you are reading these lines, cast your 
soul on the promise, ' He that cometh unto me, 
I will in no wise cast out.' " 

The winter of the following year was passed 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 121 

in London. In May and June, 1790, Miss 
Ritchie visited Newcastle, where, she says, " I 
spent some time with Miss Dale,* and found 
sweet fellowship of spirit with her, and freedom 
among the people, although, at first, I thought 
them rather shy and distant." 

The following portion of a letter, written 
from this place to her friend, Mrs. T — n, will 
show the habitual spirituality of her mind : — 

" Newcastle-upon-Tyne, July 12th, 1790. 

* * * :£ * 

" A thousand things conspire to proclaim, 
* This is not our home.' My spirit deeply feels 
the solemn truth, and longs to improve the flying 
moments in getting fully ready for enlargement ; 
ready for that blessed day which shall unite 
the scattered members of our Lord's mystical 
body in that eternal kingdom which faith opens 
to our view. Nothing else seems worth a 
thought. Lord, help me to live for this alone ! 
Help me, my dear friend, to get more of the 
spirit of the country to which I am hastening ! 
Let us live looking for our Lord, that, when- 
ever the Bridegroom cometh, we may go forth 
with joy to meet him. 

" The sweet retirement, blessed public and 
private ordinances, social interviews, &c, with 
which I have been favoured here, have been 

* Sister to Mrs. Collinson, previously named, one of 
Mr. Wesley's personal friends, and for many years an 
eminently devoted Christian. 



122 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

truly profitable to me. Dear Miss Dale, whom 
I believe you know, is a blessed follower of our 
Lord. She is a person of one business. We 
are striving to help each other to sink into the 
life of humble love, that we may rise into the 
riches of our Saviour's grace; and he conde- 
scends to smile upon us. We want to feel all 
sensible objects entirely subservient to a life of 
faith ; and often unitedly praise Him, who by 
his own blood has opened for us a way into the 
holiest. We would live, gathering up all our 
powers into Him, who is the repairer of our 
nature's breach, the restorer of paths to dwell 



To the same friend she again writes from 

"Kirkstall Forge, Sept. 14th, 1790. 

" My dear Mrs. T — n's truly Christian letter 
breathed a spirit which at once drew out my 
heart in prayer for her and for myself. O that 
we may all so follow the light as it shines, that, 
however our outward paths may differ, we may 
continually abide in the secret place of his pre- 
sence, who is a hiding-place from the storm, and 
a covert from the tempest, to all who take 
refuge in him ! Many thanks, my dear friend, 
for the kind instruction afforded me from your 
own past and present experience. I think with 
you, that the advantage of freedom from domes- 
tic cares, and, consequently, of liberty to choose 
our own employments, is no small favour ; and, 
while enjoyed in the Divine order, is a talent 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 123 

from which our Lord designs that we should 
reap much benefit. 

"I want larger views of our Saviour's love ; 
thoughts of God more worthy of him. What 
cannot, what will not, he do, for the waiting, 
praying, believing soul 1 Let you and me try 
the faithfulness of our promise-keeping Jeho- 
vah, and we shall surely prove a salvation be- 
yond our largest hopes. In some feeble man- 
ner I am striving to come forward. But the 
promised inheritance, in the kingdom of grace, 
so opens upon me, that I seem to have nothing, 
to know nothing, in respect to what lies before 
me. My heart is fixed ; my spirit cleaves to 
its Centre; and to know more of that love 
6 which passeth knowledge,' is a desire that 
swallows up all others in my soul." 

In November following, Miss Ritchie again 
arrived in London, and had the satisfaction of 
once more meeting her revered friend Mr. 
Wesley, at whose pressing invitation she be- 
came an inmate at the chapel-house. Her 
friend, Miss Roe (now marrie'd to the Rev. 
James Rogers) resided there ; but was in too 
infirm a state of health to occupy her usual 
place in the domestic circle. At the call of 
friendship, therefore, she consented, for a while, 
to undertake her charge, and says, " Believing 
it to be my providential path, I entered on my 
new engagement, and found sufficient business 
on my hands. The preacher who had usually 
read to Mr. Wesley being absent, he said to me, 



124 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

4 Betsey, you must be eyes to the blind :' I 
therefore rose with pleasure about half-past five 
o'clock, and generally read to him from six till 
breakfast time. Sometimes he would converse 
freely, and say, * How good is the Lord to bring 
you to me when I want you most ! I should 
wish you to be with me in my dying moments : 
I would have you to close my eyes.' When 
the fulness of my heart did not prevent reply, 
I have said, ' This, my dear sir, I would wil- 
lingly do ; but you live such a flying life, I do 
not well see how it is to be accomplished.' He 
would close the conversation by adding, 'Our 
God does all things well ; we will leave it in 
his hands.' During the two months I passed 
under his roof, which proved to be the last he 
spent on earth, I derived much pleasure from 
his conversation. His spirit seemed all love ; 
he breathed the air of paradise, adverting often 
to the state of separate spirits. i Can we sup- 
pose,' he would observe, ' that this active mind, 
which animates and moves the dull matter with 
which it is clogged, will be less active when set 
free ? Surely no ; it will be all activity. But 
what will be its employments ? Who can tell V 
I was greatly profited during this season. My 
hands were full ; but I felt the light of the 
Divine approbation shining on my path, which 
rendered easy many painful things I met with. 
Indeed, I felt it quite a duty to let Mr. Wesley 
want no attention I could possibly pay him : 1 
loved him with a grateful and affectionate re- 
gard, as given by God to be my guide, my 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 125 

spiritual father, and my dearest friend ; and 
was truly thankful to be assured that those 
attentions were made comforts to him. 

"With concern I saw, in February, 1791, 
that his strength declined much. He could not 
bear to continue meeting the classes, but de- 
sired me to read to him ; for, notwithstanding 
his bodily weakness, his great mind could not 
be unemployed. On Thursday, the 17th, he 
came home from Lambeth, with a bad cold ; 
but I did not then apprehend much danger. 
On the following Sunday he was unable to go 
on with his usual work. I began to fear the 
consequences, and felt a pleading spirit, crying : 
6 Lord, spare the shepherd for the people's sake !' 
My fears were nevertheless mixed with hope ; 
and as no one else seemed to apprehend dan- 
ger, I endeavoured to resist the fears that rose 
in my mind. 

" On Monday he was something better ; and, 
ever active to perform his work, Miss Wesley 
and I accompanied him to Twickenham. On 
Tuesday he preached in the City-Road chapel, 
from Galatians v, 5 : and afterward gave out 
his favourite Psalm, 

1 I '11 praise my Miker while I 've breath. 

" On Wednesday he was so much better as 
to go to Leatherhead. He returned as far as 
Mr. Wolfe's on Thursday, and on Friday 
reached home. To proceed here would only 
be to copy a narrative, written at the time by 



126 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

desire of Dr. Whitehead, which he read after 
preaching the funeral sermon." 

The narrative here mentioned was not only 
read by Dr. Whitehead after preaching the 
funeral sermon, but also printed and circulated 
throughout the Connection, for the satisfaction 
of the preachers, and the numerous friends of 
the deceased. As it is now little known, and 
is not inserted entire, or with any reference to 
the writer, in the works of Mr. Wesley's bio- 
graphers, an extract from the concluding part 
of it will here be interesting, not only from its 
connection with Miss Ritchie, but also on ac- 
count of its venerable subject : — 

" On Tuesday, March 1st, Mr. Wesley con- 
versed with his Iriend Mr. Bradford upon af- 
fairs relating to the Connection. He was 
afterward much exhausted, and, while sitting 
in his chair, was observed to change for death. 
His voice failed, and we were obliged to lay 
him down on the bed, from which he rose no 
more. After lying still and sleeping a little, 
he said, 'Betsey, you, Mr. Bradford, and the 
rest, pray and praise.' We kneeled down, and 
truly our hearts were filled with a sense of the 
Divine presence ; the room seemed to be filled 
with God. He afterward gave a few direc- 
tions respecting his funeral and other tem- 
poral concerns ; and then, as if he felt that 
he' had done with all below, begged that we 
would again pray and praise. W r hile Mr. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 127 

Broadbent was thus engaged, Mr. Wesley's 
fervour of spirit was visible to every one pre- 
sent. One thing we could not but remark, 
that when Mr. Broadbent was praying in a 
very emphatic manner, that if God were about 
to take away our father and our head to his 
eternal glory, he would continue and increase 
his blessing upon the doctrine and discipline 
which he had so long made his aged servant 
the means of propagating and establishing in 
the world ; such a degree of fervour accompa- 
nied Mr. Wesley's loud 'Amen,' as was very 
expressive of his soul's being engaged in the 
answer of our petitions. On rising from our 
knees, he took Mr. Broadbent's hand, drew him 
near, and with the utmost placidness saluted 
him, and said, < Farewell, farewell !' Mr. and 
Mrs. Rogers, Mr. Horton, and others, drew near 
the bed-side, and he took the same affectionate 
leave of them all. The next pleasing, awful 
scene was the great exertion he made in order 
to make Mr. Broadbent understand that he 
desired a sermon which he had written on the 
love of God should be scattered abroad, and 
given to every body. Something else he would 
have said, but, alas ! his speech failed ; and 
those lips which used te feed many, were no 
longer able to convey their accustomed sounds. 
Finding that we could not understand what he 
said, he paused a little, and then, with all his 
remaining strength, cried out, « The best of all 
is, God is with us !' — and then, as if to assert 
the faithfulness of our promise-keeping Jeho- 



128 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

vah, and comfort the hearts of his weeping 
friends, lifting up his dying arm in token of 
victory, and raising his feeble voice with a holy 
triumph not to be expressed, he again repeated 
the heart-reviving words, ' God is with us [' 
Some time after, on our giving him something 
to wet his parched lips, he said, « It will not do • 
we must take the consequence ; never mind the 
poor carcass.' Some friends standing near his 
bed-side, whom he did not distinctly perceive, 
(his sight being nearly gone,) he said, * Who 
are these V Mr. Rogers said, < Sir, we are come 
to rejoice with you : you are going to receive 
your crown.' l It is the Lord's doing,' he re- 
plied, 'and marvellous in our eyes.' On being 
told that Mrs.. Charles Wesley was come, he 
said, ' He giveth his servants rest.' He thanked 
her as he pressed her hand ; and on our wet- 
ting his lips, said, 4 We thank thee, O Lord, for 
these and all thy mercies : bless the Church 
and king ; and grant us peace and truth for 
ever, through Jesus Christ our Lord.' At 
another time he said : 6 He causeth his ser- 
vants to lie down in peace.' I replied, ' They 
lie down in peace indeed, who rest in our Re- 
deemer's bosom. May the Lord help us to 
rest in him, and then to rest with you in glory V 
— to which he answered, 'Amen.' Then, paus- 
ing a little, he exclaimed, 6 The Lord is with 
us ; the God of Jacob is our refuge !' and again 
requested us to pray. Mr. Broadbent was 
once more the mouth of our full hearts ; and 
though Mr. Wesley was greatly exhausted by 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 129 

these exertions, he appeared still more fervent 
in spirit. Several of his relations being pre- 
sent, Mr. Broadbent particularly thanked God 
for the honour he had conferred upon the 
family ; and earnestly prayed, that the glory 
might never be tarnished, nor they want a man 
to minister before the Lord to the latest gene- 
rations ; at the end of which petition our dying 
father discovered such ardency of desire that 
the prayer might be answered, by repeating 
his « Amen,' as greatly affected all present. 
These exertions were, however, too much for 
his feeble frame ; and during most of the night 
following, although he was often heard attempt- 
ing to repeat the Psalm before mentioned, he 
could only get out, 6 1 '11 praise, I '11 praise.* 

" On Wednesday morning we found that the 
closing scene drew near. Mr. Bradford, his 
faithful friend and most affectionate son in the 
Gospel, prayed with him, and the last word he 
was heard to articulate was, < Farewell !' A 
few minutes before ten, while Miss Wesley, Mr. 
Horton, Mr. Brackenbury, Mr. and Mrs. Ro- 
gers, Dr. Whitehead, Mr. Broadbent, Mr. 
Whitfield, Mr. Bradford, and E. Ritchie, were 
kneeling around his bed ; according to his often 
expressed desire, without a l'ngering groan, 
this man of God gathered up his feet in the 
presence of his brethren. We felt what is in- 
expressible : the ineffable sweetness that rilled 
our hearts, as our beloved pastor, father, and 
friend, entered into his Master's joy, for a few 
moments blunted the edge of our painful feel- 
9 



130 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER, 

ings on this truly glorious yet melancholy oc- 
casion. As our dear aged father breathed his 
last, Mr. Bradford was inwardly saying, « Lift 
up your heads, O ye gates, and let this heir of 
glory enter in P Mr. Rogers gave out, 

4 Waiting to receive thy spirit, 
Lo I the Saviour stands above, 
Shows the purchase of his merit, 
Reaches out the crown of love/ 

One then said, ' Let us pray for the mantle of 
our Elijah ;' on which, Mr. Rogers prayed in 
the spirit for the descent of the Holy Ghost on 
us, and on all who mourn the general loss which 
the Church militant sustains by the removal of 
our much -loved father to his great reward- 
Even so, Amen t 

" E. Ritchie." 

As a token of affectionate regard, Mr. Wes- 
ley bequeathed to Miss Ritchie his gold seal ; 
which, a few years since, was unfortunately 
(with her watch) stolen from her side in a 
crowd. He also gave her his gold pin, and 
silver fruit-knife. These, as remembrances 
both of herself and him, she has left to two 
very dear friends, who know how to prize them 
as memorials of a friendship which they highly 
valued on earth, and hope to renew in eter- 
nity. 

In the midst of many engagements, and un- 
der strongly excited feelings, Miss Ritchie was 
not insensible to the extreme solicitude of 
others on a subject so deeply interesting to the 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 131 

Church at large, as well as to herself; and thus 

writes to Mrs. T n, her kind friend at 

Camberwell : — 

" Chapel-house, March 1st, 1791. 

" Your tender sympathy and kindness, my 
dear madam, were a real blessing to me. My 
God will take your offered kindness to my dear- 
est father, as done unto himself. At present, 
he hangs between life and death, but in all 
human probability will soon leave the dull body 
behind, and fly to the regions of unclouded day. 
I cannot tell you what my heart feels. The 
heavenly sweetness discoverable in his spirit, 
and the holy confidence in our great redeeming 
Lord, expressed by my beloved father, added to 
the supernatural help which I feel my Lord 
affords, strangely bear me above myself. Soon 
we shall follow after. O let us make haste to 
live, that we may be fully ready for the day 
which manumits us, which calls us from exile 
home ! 

" You see, my dear friend, the readiness with 
which at present, I accept your kind offer. 
May our God abundantly bless you and yours! 

" Your most truly affectionate friend, and 
sister in Christ, E. Ritchie." 

" Half-past two o'clock. — My beloved father 
grows weaker and weaker ; but he is still in 
the body. 

" Wednesday noon. — Ah ! my dear friend, 
the mortal life of my beloved father and 
friend is now over ! At twenty minutes be- 



132 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

fore ten o'clock this morning, he sweetly fell 
asleep. I have no time for more. 

" This should have come yesterday, but the 
gate was locked to prevent noise." 

" After his removal," continues Miss Ritchie, 
in her journal, " a blessed sense of the glory 
upon which my dearest earthly friend had now 
entered was such as, for a short season, left me 
incapable of adverting either to my ow T n or to 
the Church's loss. But a painful sense of both 
soon flowed in upon me : yet I was graciously 
supported, and enabled to acquiesce in the 
Divine will, and at the same time to pay to the 
memory of the deceased all that was due to 
that sacred friendship with which he had so 
long honoured me. My health suffered much 
from the painful loss I daily felt ; yet, if a wish 
would have recalled him from his great reward, 
I could not have suffered it to rise in my breast. 
As soon as Mrs. Rogers was able to resume her 
charge, I gladly accepted Mrs. Wolfe's invi- 
tation to Balham, and felt a singular pleasure 
in being permitted to pay my first visit after 
the awful storm, w 7 here my dear father had paid 
his last. It was a favoured season : I felt much 
freedom with Mrs. Wolfe, and was truly thank- 
ful to find her in such an excellent spirit. 
After spending a few days at Balham, I went 
to my kind friends at Camberwell. They 
nursed me with tender care ; and we took 
sweet counsel together. The Lord reward all 
my dear friends, for the kindness they have 



MEMOIR OF 3IR3. 3IORTI3IER. 133 

shown to a worthless worm ! Indeed they are 
more than kind ; they are tenderly affectionate. 
Our mutual loss has endeared the children of 
our translated father more sensibly to each 
other." 

The following letter from Lady Maxwell to 
Miss Ritchie will furnish an important com- 
ment on this interesting narrative : — 

"March 19th, 1791. 

"I am much indebted to my dear Miss 
Ritchie for her kind attention, at a time when 
she must have been so much occupied, and had 
all her tenderest feelings tried to the uttermost. 
Your narrative gave much satisfaction to my 
mind. Though nature felt keenly, I cannot 
sufficiently adore the goodness of my God, who, 
from the moment the doleful tidings reached 
my ears, so encircled me in the Divine arm, so 
poured his love into my aching heart, as at 
once to leave it at liberty to pay the tribute so 
justly due to the memory of the dear departed 
saint, and also to rest in the fullest acquiescence 
with his will. Surely all things are possible to 
them that believe. 

* You have been highly privileged these 
three winters past, in being so much with that 
eminent servant of God, whose life was such 
a living comment upon the pure doctrines he 
taught ; and at last how greatly were you 
honoured in witnessing the closing scene ! 
By faith, I clearly trace him worshipping be- 
fore the throne ; and seem to hold fellowship 



134 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

with his happy spirit. I do not know if I ever 
heard of a life so crowded with action, so un- 
weariedly filled up, with and for God ! Not 
one vacant moment in the twenty-four hours ! 
Many sons have done well ; but if I do not 
view him through a too flattering medium, he 
excels them all. The Lord enable us, in our 
small measure, to be faithful, and to live more 
to him, by whom it is that we live at all !" 

Miss Ritchie remained for a few months in 
London, and, on the eve of her departure, was 
summoned to another scene of death. On this 
occasion she says, " July 19th. — To-day I have 
attended the remains of Mrs. Kail, the only 
surviving sister of my honoured father, to the 
same vault in which his body lies interred. 
Once more I had the melancholy pleasure of 
seeing the coffin that contains those sacred 
relics which, probably, I shall not behold again 
until that day when the flesh that rests in hope 
shall rise a glorious body. Mrs. Hall died in 
peace. 

" On the 20th, I set off for Madeley. My 
spirits were much affected on leaving London ; 
especially the chapel-house. Life is a va- 
pour : all, all on earth is shadow. Blessed be 
God, I hasten to a world where all is sub- 
stance 1" 

During this visit to Madeley, her spirits 
were refreshed and strengthened by the animat- 
ing piety of Mrs. Fletcher; as well as by the 
soothing tenderness of Lady Mary Fitzgerald, 
who was also in the neighbourhood. With 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 135 

this lady she expresses a peculiar sympathy of 
spirit, and recognizes in the kindness of her 
friends the Fountain whence these streams of 
blessings flow. 

September 11th. — On leaving Madeley, she 
says, "This visit has been a real blessing to 
me, I have caught fervour from a kindred fire; 
and long to follow my Lord as closely as my 
friends here do* Dear Mrs. Fletcher's love, 
zeal, and humility, make me feel most sensibly 
that I am far behind. May the Holy Spirit 
breathe upon me, and infuse more vigour into 
all my powers .1 

" I feel the sweetness, the security, of de- 
pendence on my adorable Redeemer. I see, I 
feel, that infinite wisdom, power, and love are 
engaged to direct, sustain, and comfort me. 
Jesus Christ has opened the way into 'the ho- 
liest f and by faith I am enabled to enter. O 
the riches of grace that open to my view ! I 
feel the truth of that word: 'Through him we 
have access by one Spirit unto the Father, and 
are no more strangers and foreigners, but fel- 
low-citizens with the saints, and of the house- 
hold of God„* The privileges of this citizen- 
ship I now in part enjoy; — light, life, and 
liberty. The intercourse is open ; but 1 come 
to my Divine Instrueter, to teach me more 
fully the way of simple faith, that I may learn 
more of God. I feel a degree of sacred atten- 
tion : my soul is recollected, and sits, with 
Mary at the Master's feet; waiting for those 
brighter manifestations of his glory, which 



136 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

shall transform me more completely into the 
image of my Lord. I am permitted to hold 
sacred communion with the militant Church ; 
as well as something very like it with the 
Church triumphant. Lord, keep me in the se- 
cret place of thy presence; and let all my 
powers be gathered into thee, who art my 
Saviour, Husband, Brother, Friend!" 

Her experience at this time seems to have 
assumed a character of greater richness and 
maturity. It was the result of principles that 
had taken deep root in her nature, rather than 
the effervescence of excited feeling. Divine 
truth was apprehended in its just proportions ; 
and its consistency and beauty, as a whole, 
were contemplated more steadily by enlarged 
and realizing faith. No undue prominence 
was now given to one class of the Spirit's op- 
erations, to the disparagement of others, at 
least as indispensable, and as Divine. A trans- 
forming energy was moulding her, with gen- 
tle influence, into the image of her Lord. The 
discipline of sanctified affliction had not been 
endured in vain. A deep and tranquil flow of 
holy feeling, the result of a clear sense of re- 
conciliation to God through "the blood of 
sprinkling," and the order of subdued and har- 
monized affections, diffused a sweet serenity 
through all her powers. Watchfully alive to 
the devices of the subtle enemy of souls, she 
found the armour of the Spirit to be proof 
against his specious or malignant wiles. Her 
religious consolations, being the result of per- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 137 

manent and certain causes, flowed as living 
waters from perennial springs ; and no unhal- 
lowed thirst for earth's unsatisfying and un- 
sanctioned pleasures disturbed their freshness 
or transparency. 

Miss Ritchie passed the following winter in 
Yorkshire; and in January, 1792, thus re- 
cords her continued sense of the Divine good- 
ness : — 

" I am kept in perfect peace ; but I want a 
fulness of Gospel blessings ; to feel always as I 
have been permitted to feel at some seasons, 
deeply and inexpressibly, that ' faith is the sub- 
stance of things hoped for, the evidence of 
things not seen.' In visiting the sick I have 
been much affected, and found the engagement 
very profitable." 

Her concern for others, and faithfulness in 
admonition, where apparent danger rendered 
it incumbent duty, will be seen in the follow- 
ing extract : — " I drank tea with Mrs. Cros- 
by.* There were a few persons present, who 
seemed almost persuaded to be Christians. 
They are rather in the higher walks of life ; 
but are quite at a stand, as they think they 
cannot yet give up the world. We dealt faith- 
fully with them ; and should they persist in 
trying to reconcile things in their nature irre- 

* Mrs. Crosby and her companion, Miss Tripp, were 
extensively known in Yorkshire, as Christians emi- 
nent for piety and usefulness. Mrs. Crosby was num- 
bered among Miss Ritchie's intimate friends ; and was 
one of her earliest instructers in Divine things. 



138 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

concilable, and so perish after all, we are 
clear of their blood. Alas ! what a pity it is, 
that a dread of the reproach of the cross should 
hinder any from aspiring to the title and privi- 
leges of a child of God ; and that the insipid, 
trifling conversation of those who are stran- 
gers to themselves should cut them off from 
intercourse with persons who are conversant 
with higher and better things! What thanks 
do I owe to Him, who has brought me out of 
a soil which yielded no supply for my spirit- 
ual wants, into the blessed fields of Divine 
truth ; and has cast my lot among those who 
are instructed so to feast on the precious fruits 
which grow there, as to obtain healthful nu- 
triment for their souls !" 

Her ingenuous and entire dependence on the 
providence, as well as on the grace, of God, 
the following circumstance will prove : — " On 
Tuesday I had a very peculiar proof of my 
gracious Lord's tender care over me. Some 
temporal matters called for my attention : I 
found myself utterly unable to know how to 
act ; but I went with my usual simplicity to 
him, and prayed that he would point out my 
path. He answered me in so direct a man- 
ner, as plainly to convince me of what I have 
repeatedly proved before, that he careth for 
those who confide in him. At present I am 
peculiarly called to abide, girding up the loins 
of my mind, in watchful prayer and waiting 
faith ; that I may more perfectly hope for a full 
revelation of that grace which shall be brought 



MEMOIR OF MKS. MORTIMER. 139 

unto me at the coming of our Lord Jesus 
Christ." 

In the following spring, Miss Ritchie visited 
her friends in Gloucestershire and the neigh- 
bouring counties. "The sight of my friends," 
she says, " was consoling to me. To the un- 
bounded love of my heavenly Father I owe all 
my mercies. 1 left them with pure affection, 
and a heart glowing with gratitude to God and 
man. Let me meet them again on earth or 
in heaven, as it seems best to him ! My soul 
enjoys a deep and sweet sense of its union 
with Christ. This places me on good ground ; 
for all the promises are yea and amen in 
him." 

Christianity is not the parent of stoicism. 
This perverted feeling had no place in the bo- 
som of Miss Ritchie ; who thus writes, on the 
death of a little favourite niece : — " About ten 
days ago, I received a letter from Otley, which 
informed me that my lovely niece, Betsey Rit- 
chie, had had the measles ; and that she was 
still suffering seriously under the effects of the 
disorder. I immediately laid her case before 
the Lord. I saw infinite love in the affliction, 
and could only say, ' Thy will be done.' I 
own I felt little expectation of her life. Yes- 
terday, another letter informed me that this 
sweet child had breathed her last. For some 
hours after I had received the intelligence, re- 
signation, praise, natural affection, and sym- 
pathy with the suffering parents, were strange- 
ly mingled in my breast. I loved her tenderly ; 



140 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

and, indeed, the peculiar affection she always 
manifested toward me was so great, that it 
would have been strange if I had not. When 
I left home in August my sweet Betsey accom- 
panied me for a short distance on my way ; 
and when we parted said, ' Come home soon, 
aunt, and me come and meet you.' So thou 
most likely wilt, my angel niece ! — but it will 
be to welcome me to my everlasting home. I 
deeply felt the distinction between my feelings 
as a Christian, and a mortal subjected to hu- 
man ties. As a Christian, I thankfully ac- 
quiesced ; for my heart adored the infinite love 
which I clearly saw in the dispensation : but 
as a mortal, my emotions expressed themselves 
in floods of tears, which Jesus did not disap- 
prove. My spirit felt a new tie to the invisi- 
ble world, and a hallowed nearness by faith to 
the triumphant Church." If " He who is the 
greatest of all Beings, is also the kindest, and 
the gentlest, and the tenderest, and the best ;" 
it is not surprising that those who bear his 
image, should be imbued with the same sym- 
pathies. 

The last subjects noticed in Miss Ritchie's 
journal prove that true patriotism is a genuine 
fruit of true religion. The interests of her 
country, and of the world, engaged her solici- 
tude and prayers. During a period of peculiar 
exigency, she marked with an observant eye 
the march of Providence ; and, by that faith 
which penetrates the veil of outward causes, 
discerned the uplifted hand of him who held 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 141 

the rod. This volume of instruction, closed by- 
sevenfold seals from vulgar, selfish, worldly 
spirits, was perused by her with deep and se- 
rious interest. Her meditative mind was 
quickened to devotion ; while, above the fluc- 
tuating elements which agitate this mundane 
system, she beheld the Church reposing in per- 
fect security beneath the charge of Christ. 

" I see," she says, in a letter to her friend 
Miss Marshall, dated July, 1791, "the hand of 
God in these events, though Satan is undoubtr 
edly the author of them. The signs of the 
times seem to me worthy of attention ; and to 
observe them, confirms me in that blessed truth, 
'The Lord reigneth.' 1 see the Church, the 
nation, the worlds visible and invisible, so en- 
tirely in my Lord's hands, that all I have to 
do is, to attend to the indications of his will, 
and keep my eye fixed on the blessed Saviour ; 
and all shall then be well." 

To the same friend she afterward adds : — 

"October, 1793. 

" Perhaps you have heard of the new facto- 
ry about to be established at Sierra-Leone. 
One end which the gentlemen engaged in it 
have in view, is, the abolition of the slave- 
trade. It is to be cultivated with free, instead 
of enslaved blacks. Mr. H.,who has been the 
curate of Madeley, is going as chaplain to the 
factory. He has long believed that his call 
would some time be to the perishing heathen ; 
and when this was offered to him, he did not 



142 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

dare to resist, thinking it was very probable that 
this was the way by which the Lord might 
choose to spread the Gospel through what is 
now a very dark part of the world. I mention 
this, that you may pray for Mr. H., for the 
poor x\fricans, and also for the inhabitants of 
Madeley. It is a trial to dear Mrs. F. ; but 
she sees the Lord's hand in it, and, therefore, 
meekly submits." 

The establishment of this colony, and the 
circumstances connected with it, though, in 
themselves, apparently of small importance, 
yet contained the germs of great events. It 
assisted to draw forth into the blaze of day the 
horrors of the slave-trade ; and in some fervent, 
youthful spirits enkindled the first spark of 
missionary zeal. 

The following are the closing paragraphs of 
the journal : — 

"Clifton, February 3rd, 17 '93. — War is de- 
clared by France. It seems as if England must 
take up arms. Lord, thou ha3t a praying 
remnant, and wilt, I trust, answer, for the sake 
of our great High Priest. This morning we 
had a visit from Sir John Stonehouse : his 
conversation afforded me pleasure and profit. 
He left us with an account of Mr. Hervey's 
last words, which were, ' Lord, now lettest 
thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes 
have seen thy' — ; here death suppressed his 
voice, and glory unfolded the mysteries of re- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 143 

deeming love to his soul. May my last end be 
like his ! 

"April 19th. — This day is appointed, by 
public authority, for humiliation, prayer, and 
fasting, on account of the present war. 1 have 
found freedom of spirit to pour out my heart 
before the Lord, and to join in the prayer of 
faith. Lord, help us as a nation ; baffle the 
crooked serpent's skill; turn his sharp darts 
; side ! Bless our good king : defend him from 
* nd defeat his enemies ! Bless thine heritage ; 
preserve to us our privileges ; and let not the 
world break in upon us ! Keep us by thy 
rower! Let us stand in thy might ! And if 
the spirit of some, who seek to drive us we 
know not whither, cannot be reclaimed, in the 
way thou seest best take them from us ! — 
Being by illness detained from public worship, 
I felt much nearness to God, in secret commu- 
nion with him in my chamber. 

1 O love Divine, how sweet thou art !' " 

Thus ends a diary, which was continued 
through more than twenty years. It unfolds 
the principles upon which the writer's charac- 
ter was formed ; and shows the germ of piety 
expanding to a plant of healthful foliage, bear- 
ing rich and seasonable fruit. Now, in the 
glory of meridian summer, its leaf was beauti- 
fully verdant ; its roots had deeply struck into 
a genial soil ; and its luxuriant branches spread 
a cooling shadow over many a sapling in the 
garden of the Lord. For their sakes, as well 



144 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

as for its own increasing fruitfulness, it was 
permitted for yet many years to stand among 
the trees of the spiritual Eden ; that He who 
had created it a " plant of righteousness," be- 
neath whose culture it had flourished, and from 
whose rain and sunshine it had drawn all its 
vitality and vigour, might be glorified in its 
perfection, before he should transplant it into 
the celestial paradise, to bloom in undecaying 
verdure beneath more cloudless and congenial 
skies. 



CHAPTER IV. 

" Religion is in man the well-spring" of all other sound 
and sincere virtues, from whence both in some sort 
here, and hereafter more abundantly, his full joy and 
felicity ariseth, because while he lives he is blessed of 
God, and when he dies, his works follow him." — 
Hooker. 

Miss Ritchie still pursued an active and 
diligent course of usefulness. Her time was 
principally passed among her numerous friends, 
whom she endeavoured, by her spirit and ex- 
ample, as well as by her more direct counsels 
on religious subjects, to stimulate in seeking, 
with an undivided heart, the pearl of priceless 
value. The young, especially, she sought to 
influence ; knowing well the infinite impor- 
tance of Christian decision in the dawning day 
of life. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 145 

The following extracts from letters written 
by Miss March (a lady of eminent piety in 
Bristol) to her friend J. J., give a pleasing 
sketch of Miss Ritchie's spirit and character, 
and show how usefully and how acceptably 
her zeal and talents were at this time em- 
ployed. 

" February 27th, 1793. 
" We have a profitable prayer meeting on 
Monday mornings at eleven o'clock, at Mrs. 
Pine's. Miss Ritchie is in Bristol, and takes 
the lead. She is a true disciple ; a simple, 
humble follower of the Lamb, devoted in heart 
and life to Christ ; and lives on earth the life 
of heaven. I find with her unity of spirit : 
there is that in her which does me good." 

" Bristol, April 13th, 1793. 
" Your ideas of Miss Ritchie are just. I am 
more and more pleased with her truly simple 
and Christian temper of mind. She seems dis- 
posed to lend a helping hand to lift all souls 
out of 'the mire and clay ;' and to assist the 
weak of the flock, as they have strength, to 
travel on. I see in her, in a great measure, 
the answer of that request : — 

* Let me in my life express 
All the heights of holiness ; 
Sweetly in my spirit prove 
All the depths of humble love.* 

As a ministering angel she goes about doing 

good to the bodies and the souls of her fellow 

10 



146 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

creatures. She has a rare talent ; an equal 
capacity for usefulness in spiritual and temporal 
things ; a ready hand for all the concerns of 
life, while her spirit soars aloft, often enjoys 
intimate union with God, and free admittance 
into his presence, and worships there, in silent 
awe, reverence, and love. Her deportment 
operates upon my mind at present, as a reproof 
for not having made the best use of life, and 
the best of my way to heaven. She has tra- 
velled on, I apprehend, from the beginning, 
without stopping or staying in all the plain, 
and has proceeded far on her way to quiet 
resting places, and sure dwellings in his love, 
and is walking in that high way of holiness, 
where no lion or ravenous beast shall come. I 
do not mean that she is exempt from tempta- 
tion ; but she is truly blessed of the Lord." 

"May 26th, 1795. 

" Miss Ritchie is come to stay some time. 
She will nurse the weak of the flock ; and here 
there are many such. She will also, I hope, 
do me good. I covet her presence at my dying 
pillow ; as she would speak words of faith, and 
pray in faith, and administer consolation, and 
not willingly grieve any of the children of 
men. She is the disciple of Jesus, whom she 
follows. "* 

* For this interesting 1 document, for one which fol- 
lows of not less importance, and for Other valuable 
notices, the present work is indebted to Thomas Mar- 
riott, Esquire. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 147 

This pleasing testimony will be corrobora- 
ted by the following productions of Miss 
Ritchie's own pen. They were written to two 
of her young friends ; and evince the wisdom, 
zeal, and tenderness, with which she entered 
on the interesting task of recommending true 
religion to their early and decided choice. 

" Otley. 
H By this time, I hope my dear Miss K. has 
escaped the snare, in which her reserve, and 
the subtlety of Satan, had for some time held 
her. It is very true, many talk too much ; 
and it is to be feared, that the neglect of 
prayer, and that of hiding the good word in the 
heart by meditation, is one chief reason why 
so little fruit appears on many that hear much. 
But to impose silence on ourselves respecting 
the work of the Spirit in our hearts, seems to 
be neither recommended by Scripture nor expe- 
rience. Were Christians in general to adopt 
this plan, what would become of Christian fel- 
lowship, and what need of the repeated ex- 
hortations in sacred Scripture, to * build each 
other up in our most holy faith,' to £ bear each 
other's burdens?' &c. Comfort by the mutual 
faith of each other would be little known; each 
would tread a lonely path ; and the heighten- 
ing our joys, quickening our desires, or lessen- 
ing our sorrows by social intercourse, (the 
blessed privilege of members of our living Head, 
in all ages,) would be no more, or at least very 
rarely, felt. 



14S MEMOIR OF MRS, MORTTMEB. 

" Fly, my dear young friend, to the footstool 
of Him who waits to give you that love which 
will simplify your heart. You need the Gos- 
pel mould ; it is ready to receive the heart 
that, by desire after the Saviour, pours itself 
into it. I am glad to find that you know what 
you have the greatest need to watch against. 
Trust not your own heart for a moment, but 
bring it to Him who is able to change and 
make it new. ' We cannot serve God and 
mammon.' Be noble-minded ; determine wholly 
on the Lord's side. Render unto God his due. 
Now, my dear friend, is the time to make your 
choice : shadow or substance, — Christ or the 
world, — profession only and self-pleasing, or 
the possession of a present Saviour, and that 
self-denying path which, in lines marked with 
blood Divine, leads to eternal glory ! 

" I am ready to anticipate your choice. If 
you only determine to be wholly on the Lord's 
side, and act consistently with that determina- 
tion, Omnipotence itself shall be your defence, 
and Israel's God will give you grace and glory. 
If you confess him, he will own and bless you. 
Let me entreat you, and your dear sister, to be 
faithful to the light which God has graciously 
given you. His Spirit has convinced you, that 
sin's mortal poison has infected all your powers. 
You must feel its antidote, or suffer the fatal ef- 
fects for ever. Then fly to your only remedy : 
let nothing prevent or impede your flight. Pray 
much, my dear friend, and the sinner's friend 
will bless you. He waits to do his needy crea- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 149 

tures good ; and if they will give up forbidden 
things, his love shall be their portion. In his 
favour is life : secure this, whatever you gain 
or lose beside." 

The subsequent letter to Miss T n will 

show the discrimination with which Miss 
Ritchie judged of peculiar circumstances, pur- 
suits, and characters, and, consequently, of the 
different obstacles which prevented prompt 
decision, on the subject of religion, in the mind 
of her young friends. 

"Madeley. 

" My Dear Miss T n, — I wish to hear 

what effect your late excursion to Brighton has 
had on both body and mind. You have tra- 
velled through a beautiful country, richly filled 
with the varied goodness of our great Creator. 
The delightful views about Dorking had, a few 
weeks before, led my mind from earth to 
heaven. Thy works 
4 Thus wondrous fair : thyself how wondrous then V 

Yet, O astonishing love ! The Creator of the 
universe, he who upholds all things by the word 
of his power, he becomes our Redeemer, and 
dies, for us rebels, by the hands of the crea- 
tures he has made. Seek, my dear friend, seek 
an acquaintance with him as such. * All his 
works praise him ;' yet man, while living a 
stranger to the covenant of promise, is an in. 
-strument sadly out of tune. Yet when born of 
the Spirit, when through the power of Divine 



150 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

grace, he is made a new creature in Christ 
Jesus, he too joins the general chorus, and, as 
a being of a higher order, shows forth the glory 
and the majesty of God. David adds, ' Thy 
saints give thanks unto thee. They show the 
glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power ; 
that thy power, thy glory, and the mightiness 
of thy kingdom, might be known unto men.' I 
long that you should become a subject of his 
kingdom. Your mind rises into what is 
rational ; but I want you to enjoy what is spi- 
ritual : pray for the power. At various times 
the Holy Spirit has graciously touched your 
heart with a sense of want ; but your studies 
have proved to this blessed spark in you, what 
the foolish trifles of a moment have been to 
many others ; — they engross your mind, so that 
its entire vigour is drawn into them. Let me 
entreat you to be determined that you will take 
time for private prayer, and for reading the 
Scriptures as the revealed will of God. They 
will help you to read yourself; and really, in 
one sense, that word is true, * All wisdom cen- 
tres there.' The soul that sees itself will ear- 
nestly desire Christ. Let me hear from you ; 
tell me in what you seek your happiness, what 
your understanding approves, and whether or 
no you will follow its light." 

Miss Ritchie's progress, from the conclusion 
of her journal to the period of her marriage, 
must be traced chiefly through her correspon- 
dence ; from which it would appear, that her 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. . 151 

excursions gradually became less extended, and 
that in Bristol and its vicinity she spent the 
larger portion of taer time. There, in the so- 
ciety of her respected friends, Mrs. P., Mrs. F., 
and others, she was favoured with retirement, 
as well as with the pleasures that arise from 
intellectual and Christian intercourse. Yet, in 
the midst of many privileges which she greatly 
valued, frequent claims were made upon her 
sympathy ; and in the chamber of affliction, or 
beside the dying couch, she sat to utter words 
of consolation, and minister alike to spiritual 
and to bodily distress. A few extracts from 
her letters written at 'this period will show how 
tenderly she felt for persons in distressing cir- 
cumstances ; as well as her peculiar talent for 
improving painful dispensations in the spirit of 
submissive faith and piety. Recognizing in 
the sufferings of a Christian the discipline of 
paternal love and wisdom, she was pre- 
pared to offer to her friends such soothing 
topics of reflection, as tended to allay the pre- 
sent anguish by the hope of a greater and 
eternal good. The following letter, to Mrs. T. 
of Camberwell, was written to relieve her 
anxiety respecting her friend and relative Mrs. 
F., who was suffering from the fracture of a 
limb : — 

" Bristol, November 11th, 1798, 
" My Dear Friend, — Judging of your feel- 
ings by my own, before I was under the same 
roof with our suffering friend, I take up my 



152 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

pen to tell you how we go on. All things con- 
sidered, she is doing as well as can be expected ; 
but the best is a state of great suffering. Her 
greatest comfort is, that she is in such good 
hands ; and, blessed be our Rock ! he sweetly 
and powerfully supports and comforts her. She 
bids me tell you, that her consolations are nei- 
ther few nor small. She is all poverty and 
weakness ; but our Redeemer is all strength 
^nd fulness ; and her spirit has such a sight of 
the suitableness between him and herself, (with 
a power to take hold on him by faith,) as in- 
fuses Divine resignation and peace throughout 
the inner man. But the poor body suffers 
much ; every part seems to sympathize with the 
broken limb. Our dear friend is learning, by 
a very painful process^ some lessons respecting 
the head and the members, which our gracious 
High Priest blesses both to her edification, and,, 
I trust, to ours. This afflictive dispensation 
will, I hope, be sanctified to us all. Mrs. F.'s 
children and friends have a striking proof be. 
fore their eyes of the power of real Christianity* 
Nothing but religion can gild the gloom of 
affliction. O that all my young friends at 
Camberwell may seek that acquaintance with 
the Saviour which will enable them to rejoice 
in tribulation ! For life, at the best, is but a 
chequered path. But communion with God 
turns our evil into good ; our present pain into 
future pleasure. 

" I find that the time of a broken limb's be- 
ginning to ossify, is very different in different 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 153 

subjects. I feai Mrs. F.'s will not be one of 
the quickest. But she is in the hands of infi- 
nite love ; and he can invert the order of na- 
ture, if it will conduce most to his own glory. 

" November 27th. — I spent an hour with dear 
Miss Johnson* on Sunday evening. I cannot 
give you a better description of the state of her 
mind than by telling you, that, on my reading 
to her a letter from dear Lady Mary Fitz- 
gerald, wherein she inquired whether ' the cor- 
ruptible body did press down the spirit,' she 
replied, ' My soul springs up,' (using a most 
expressive motion with her hand,) 'my soul 
springs up ; it ascertains its right, it feels the 
resurrection's power.' I felt as if with a spirit 
almost glorified ! The heaven that appeared 
in her countenance is inexpressible. She is 
very weak, but not in much pain. We hold 
her with a trembling hand, and daily expect 
to hear that she has joined the Church of the 
first-born. I long to catch the mantle of our 
departing Elijahs ; and to follow them, as they 
followed Christ. My soul does breathe the air 
of paradise. God has so moulded my spirit^ 
that 1 feel no relish for any thing but what 
leads me nearer to himself. But a sweet, deep 
degree of spirituality opens before me ; and 
closer union with my Saviour will bring me 
into it. To effect this, my dear friend, the 
Lord varies his dealings with us. May all 
answer the end ! — Then all will be well. We 

* This lady was one of the stars of Methodism in 
Bristol, and a friend and correspondent of Mr. Wesley, 



154 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

are sorry to hear you have been so poorly ; and 
pray our Lord to direct you which of the ad- 
vised methods to pursue. That every new- 
covenant blessing may be your portion, prays 
"Yours, &c, E. Ritchie." 

It will be recollected, that, at the commence- 
ment of her religious course, Miss Ritchie was 
called to the deliberate sacrifice of the friend- 
ships of this world, with all the nattering pros- 
pects of advantage, which, in that direction, 
were just opening to her view. She had the 
courage to forego its fair pretensions, and to 
follow the less specious, though more safe and 
honourable, path of Christian holiness. By a 
preference so truly wise and noble, she gave 
honour to her God ; and he, in his omniscient 
providence, prepared a rich equivalent for every 
costly offering she had made. Perhaps few 
persons, circumstanced as she was, have be- 
come the centre of attraction to so wide a 
circle of truly estimable friends. With several 
individuals, eminent for talents, station, and 
piety, she maintained a regular correspond- 
ence. A few selections from these interesting 
communications will show the principles by 
which they were united ; although, in their in- 
ternal temperament, they varied as completely 
from each other, as in the character of their 
external circumstances. 

From Lady Mary Fitzgerald, with whose 
intimate and affectionate friendship Miss 
Ritchie was for many years favoured, she 



MEMOIR OF MRS. 3IORTIMER. 155 

received about this time several letters, two of 
which shall be here inserted : — 

"London, November 23rd, 1798. 
" My Dear Miss Ritchie, — I cannot express 
how much I was shocked at hearing last night 
of our dear and valuable friend's distressing 
accident. She has scarcely been out of my 
thoughts since, either sleeping or waking. 
After you have been so good as to give me the 
whole account, I hope you will, from time to 
time, let me know how she goes on. Much is 
to be learned from such lessons. How little do 
We know, when we go out of our houses, what 
is to befall us before we return to them ! But 
this we know, that all shall work together for 
good to those who love the Lord ; and what we 
know not now we shall know hereafter. Here, 
* we see through a glass darkly ;' therefore, we 
are called upon to believe and trust : by and 
by faith shall be turned into sight. Though I 
have been, in general, in a very stupid, dull, 
dead frame of spirit, I had, the other morning, 
a most comfortable view of the happiness of 
beholding our Tri-une God and Saviour, with- 
out interruption or intermission, for ever and 
for ever. I cannot express how delightful that 
6 for ever' appeared ; and, though Satan was at 
my elbow with his fearful injections, that such 
anticipations were in my case presumptuous, 
the Lord reminded me that his grace, and not 
my worthiness, was the all-availing plea ; and 
that therefore, as the chief of sinners, I might 



156 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

put in my humble request to be accepted for 
his name's sake alone. O, adored be his name, 

Jesus !" 

"London, December bth, 1798. 

" Many thanks, my dear friend, for your kind 
compliance with my request. Our beloved 
sufferer's state of soul is truly enviable, and to 
be rejoiced in ; but I feel much for her poor 
body. Yet, I know that she is in safe and 
omnipotent hands ; and that God loves her 
better than I can do. He works thus for his 
own glory and her good, to brighten her crown, 
and to show to all with whom she converses 
the power of his grace, in keeping her soul in 
perfect peace, because her mind is stayed on 
him. I am ready to envy you, who have an 
opportunity of being a comfort and of use to 
her. Old as I am, I should think myself hap- 
py, and highly honoured, if I were near to help 
or to sit up with her. 

«'- 1 must now thank you for your account of 
our beloved Miss Johnson, — by this time, per- 
haps, a happy spirit escaped from the body ; a 
happy spirit, even in the poor, perishing clay ; 
but supremely so if she has dropped it. If she 
be still in it, I beg her prayers ; as I do your 
own. Dear Mrs. Fletcher, I have been inform- 
ed, is poorly ; she could scarcely get through 
the fatigues of the thanksgiving day. 

" What shall I render to the Lord for all his 
mercies ? Alas ! I have nothing but my poor, 
mean thanks and praises ! Every moment 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 157 

adds to my great debt, and I have nothing to 
pay ; so he frankly forgives me all, and adds 
more favours and more blessings daily. O that 
I could thank and love him as I ought to do ! 
My God ! my God ! accept my poor mite of 
praise and gratitude, when well washed in the 
atoning blood of my adorable Redeemer ! 

" You live in rich pastures as to Gospel or- 
dinances. I should be thankful to enjoy them, 
and to be admitted to some of our dear friends' 
more private meetings ; to join in spirit, and 
to reap the benefit of their and your prayers. 
I know not as yet, whether I am to be of your 
party ; but I feel a pleasure in the uncertainty. 
We are always in our Lord's gracious hands ; 
but it is pleasant to feel it in a peculiar man- 
ner, and the more so as I used to find uncer- 
tainty so remarkably displeasing to my impa- 
tient nature : but my blessed Lord has, in a 
measure, taught me otherwise. All glory be 
to his name for that, and for all things ! 

" I seem to be so out of patience with poor, 
wretched self, as almost to bring a shadow of 
murmuring or discontent that is truly painful ; 
at least the cloud rests upon the tabernacle, 
and I do not seem to journey. However I 
know that our gracious Lord can in a moment 
remove it, and command and enable me again 
to go forward ; therefore will I strive to wait 
patiently on him who is my sun, though he 
refuse to shine. Blessed be his name ! I dwell 
for ever on his heart, as my great High Priest ; 



158 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

and for ever he on mine, although not always 
equally felt by his sensible presence." 

The cup of sorrow, in this fallen world is 
speedily transferred from lip to lip. The in- 
disposition noticed at the close of Miss Rit- 
chie's last letter to her friend Mrs. T n, 

soon assumed the character of mortal sickness ; 
and a fresh occasion was presented for the 
Christian sympathy of one who never shunned 
the house of mourning, or shrunk from scenes 
of suffering, either through the dread of per- 
sonal endurance, oi\ from cold and heartless 
apathy. 

The valuable and distinguished friend to 
whom that letter was addressed, by the advice 
of her physicians, went to Bath ; and thence 
after a few months of patient and sanctified 
affliction, passed in calm and holy triumph to 
her everlasting rest. She was a woman of no 
ordinary mental stature ; but, to a strong and 
reflective intellect, united erudition and ac- 
complishments, which, at that period especial- 
ly, came not within the usual limits of a fe- 
male education. She was honoured with the 
friendship of the venerable Wesley, who visit- 
ed the family, and was the centre of delight- 
ed interest to them, and to the social circle 
who were privileged to meet him there, and 
listen to his animating and instructive conver- 
sation ; which, when younger persons formed 
his audience, he felt pleasure in adapting to 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 159 

their circumstances. Well he knew the force 
and value of impressions made upon the open- 
ing mind. With him, religion was a cease- 
less spring of cheerfulness and wisdom ; and 
both by precept and example, he inculcated 
upon his rising charge, that " all her ways are 
pleasantness, and all her paths are peace." 

The Bath waters, however, afforded Mrs. 
T. but little relief; and her complaints increas- 
ing, Miss Ritchie was soon found in the sick 
chamber of her afflicted friend. Through 
the last trying month of her mortal pilgrim- 
age, she was her constant and assiduous 
attendant; and, for the edification of Mrs. 
T.'s family and friends, drew up a beautiful 
and touching narrative of the circumstances ot 
that interesting period. A few extracts will 
not only elucidate the character of the suf- 
ferer, but the power of that Divine religion 
by whose principles and consolations she was 
strengthened to endure affliction ; to surmount 
the fear of death ; and, by an elevating faith, 
to rise into sublime companionship with the 
felicities and glories of the world beyond. 

"On one occasion," says Miss Ritchie, 
" when speaking of the excellency of the Holy 
Scriptures, Mrs. T. observed, ' What conde- 
scension in God, thus to address his creatures ! 
The Bible is the best book ; it is the truth. 
Lately I have read little else; and, should I 
live, it shall be my one book. It contains 
every thing. I feel my weakness, and it calls 
upon me to trust in the Lord Jehovah ; for in 



160 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

him is everlasting strength. She then request- 
ed a friend to read Isaiah xxv, and to pray 
with her. It seemed like worshipping before 
the throne. How near is heaven to earth !" 

These encomiums on the value of the Holy- 
Scriptures were not the result of blind preju- 
dice, or of morbidly-excited feeling. They 
were testimonies to their truth and excellence, 
drawn forth by frequent, long, and studious 
examination. By Mrs. T. they had been sub- 
jected to the ordeal of criticism in their ori- 
ginal tongues, and tested by the experience of 
a long religious life. She was, therefore, a 
competent witness ; and on the verge of eter- 
nity is heard urging on her children and 
friends, as her dying injunction, to read the 
Bible, to search the Scriptures. How admo- 
nitory, how instructive is this! 

It would be easy to linger on the beautiful 
and solemn picture of a Christian's gradual dis- 
engagement from earth, and its most tender 
and endearing interests ; heightened as it is in 
the present instance, by the irradiations of in- 
tellect, as well as by the glow of devotion. 
But one farther extract must suffice : — 

"Mrs. T. having been told that Miss Mar- 
tha More had frequently called when she was 
too ill to see any one, she said, ' 1 love her and 
all that family ; they fill an important station. 
There are few people of talent who can bear 
to know their own importance. But it ought to 
humble and stimulate to a right use of them; 
for talents for the good of others are awful 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 161 

trusts committed to our care. It is not at our 
option whether we use them, or not. I have 
often had serious thoughts upon this subject. 
It is seldom we see such a family as the Mores.' 
Finding herself a little better, she desired to see 
Miss More. * You see me,' she said, « weak 
in body; but my mind is vigorous. Yours 
is a singular family. God has given great tal- 
ents to you all ; and it is true wisdom to know 
the part we are called to act, and to fulfil it. 
We are little aware of the loss we shall sus- 
tain, if we do not properly fill up the place for 
which we are fitted. I have had awful views 
of this, — such views as have influenced my in- 
tentions. I have aimed at using what was 
committed to me, to the glory of God ; and 
though I have fallen far short of my aim, yet 
I am now thankful that my endeavours were 
directed to what, at this important moment, 
my mind fully approves- I am a weak, help- 
less creature ; and I do not speak because I 
have filled my place, or done the work assign- 
ed me ; — no, I have only aimed at it ; — but 
because I wish that all had a proper sense of 
the increasing enjoyment they may attain to 
by a right use of their time and talents. The 
necessity of this appears from the apostle's 
words, Press toward the mark : covet earnest- 
ly the best gifts : and from our Lord's account 
of the ten virgins. They were all entrusted 
with talents; all had light, and all had gifts ; 
but the wise improved, the foolish neglected 
11 



162 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

their talents. You are engaged in a good 
work ; may you go on and; prosper ! If he 
that giveth a cup of cold water shall not loose 
his reward,, the service of those who seek the 
spiritual good of their fellow creatures shall 
surely he remembered. God is faithful; I am 
a poor worm, but I have found him so, be- 
yond what I could have hoped* Often in my 
chamber have I prayed, 

When pain o'er this weak flesh prevails, 
With lamb-like patience arm my breast ;. 

When grief my wounded soul assails* 
In lowly meekness may I rest I 

And I have had a strong assurance that it 
should be so ' r insomuch that I have frequently 
returned to my knees, to thank God for what 
I believed he would do. I have often poured 
forth my soul in prayer respecting the hour 
that now draws near: I had reason to believe 
he would be with me, and now he is answer* 
ijyv my faith. If a petition is presented, we 
know it was accepted if the thing petitioned 
for is granted r — does it not amount to a cer- 
tainty? Spiritual things are realities: faith 
produces effects : God is faithful to his word.* 
Then, turning to her children, she said, ' My 
dear children, let no one cheat you out of im- 
mortality.' Looking earnestly at Miss More, 
she added, ' I love you, and pray to God to 
oless you, and your dear sisters. ' Miss More 
was much affected, and thanked her for her 
prayers. ' We often ask/ she replied, ' the 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 163 

prayers of others ; but have only faint concep- 
tions of the love and benevolence of the prayer 
of Jesus for us, " 

The deep, practical importance of these sub- 
jects, every Christian mind will strongly feel ; 
and at the same time will thankfully acknow- 
ledge, that in years of health and vigour it is 
not vain to pray for grace, to meet the exi- 
gencies of a dying hour. Beneath a sky so 
rich and cloudless, who would not desire to 
sink to rest? 

Miss Ritchie's close and protracted attend- 
ance on her sick and dying friends excited the 
solicitude of those who survive, on her own ac- 
count. Lady Mary Fitzgerald kindly inquires, 
"how has our blessed Lord supported your weak 
frame through such a variety of repeated trials 
as you have had, following so closely one upon 
the other I It really appears to me little less 
than a miracle. The various accounts receiv- 
ed from you of suffering and dying friends, I 
have found truly edifying. O that my life 
were more like your own, and those you have 
attended ! I am a poor cumberer of the ground ; 
yet, I trust, our blessed Saviour pardons, and 
has redeemed me ; but I daily feel the want ot 
sanctifying grace. 

" Mr. Newton,* who was with me yester- 
day morning, told me that he had advised Mr. 

T n to let your account of his precious 

wife be printed, and that he has consented. I 
shall rejoice in receiving some copies of it. 

* The late venerable rector of St. Mary Wookioth's. 



164 MEMOIR OF MKS. MOKTIMEK. 

" I must set about making up a little parcel 
of tracts, which I shall direct to you, that you 
and our dear friends may enjoy them, whether 
I live or die. That is a solemn word, and con- 
tains matter of vast importance. As I wrote 
it, a thought passed through my mind : Where 
shall my immortal part be while my friends are 
enjoying these tracts ? Sometimes I am per- 
mitted so to rejoice in hope, that I even long 
to depart ; and at other times, I have such 
humbling views of the sins of my nature, of 
the greatest part of my life devoted to sin, 
Satan, and the present world, and not only my 
short comings, at the best, but of the coldness 
of my repentance, the deadness and, for the 
most part, the formality of my prayers and du- 
ties, that it appears to me presumption for such 
a worm as I to hope. Yet, blessed be his holy 
name ! he does not suffer me to despair, but 
brings to my mind sweet and encouraging 
texts ; — above all, that gracious promise, not 
to cast out any that come to him. It is my 
misery that I do not feel that total resignation 
of will that I wish and pray for ; yet, sometimes 

it has occurred to me, as Mrs. T n so 

sweetly expresses it, that 'we certainly have 
the answer of our prayers.' I am charmed 
with all you repeat of her sayings ; and 
earnestly pray, O may my latter end be like 
hers !" 

The expansions of Christian sympathy adapt 
themselves to the vicissitudes of human life ; 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 105 

so that the apostolic precepts to " rejoice with 
those that do rejoice," and to " weep with those 
who weep," are not incompatible, even though 
required to be almost simultaneously fulfilled. 
While Miss Ritchie was much engaged in per- 
forming offices of friendship in the chamber 
of affliction, she was not insensible to that 
more cheerful class of feelings which are ex- 
cited by the bright and palmy scenes of life. 

To two friends, (Mr. and Mrs. J ,) who had 

lately been united in the dearest of all earthly 
ties, she wrote as follows : — 

" Bath, January 31st, 1798, 
u It has not been owing to a want of warm 
desire for the real and permanent happiness of 
my dear friends, that ray pen has not, ere this 
time, expressed how sincerely I wish them 
every blessing our God can bestow ; and that 
he may make them truly helpful to each other 
in their journey through this wilderness to 
Mount Zion. My heart has prayed, and shall 
still pray, that the God of love may smile upon 
their union, and make every change in their 
outward circumstances a blessed means of 
bringing them nearer to himself, 

" Will my dear friends excuse me ? The 
love my heart feels toward them induces me to 
believe they wilL Then I will venture to speak 
freely, and to write as one who loves them, 
and shall soon meet them in the world of spi- 
rits. Seek all your happiness in God : he is 
(he fountain of true felicity. The most ra- 



166 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

tional of all creature comforts — sanctified 
friendship— is but a stream; but when enjoyed 
in him it is a pleasant one, and often proves a 
blessed channel which conducts us to its source- 
See, my dear friends, that you draw each other 
nearer to God ; and that you begin as you 
would wish to end. Set up an alter for God 
in your house. My prayer for you both is, that 
you may in all things honour Him who saith, 
' Them that honour me, I will honour ;' then 
ehajl your happiness be permanent, and your 
enjoyments only beginning when this transitory 
but important scene shall close." 

Again ;— • * 

'Clifton, April, 1708. 

" The office of friendship is to sweeten life, 
and accelerate the movements of our friend* 
heavenward ; how much more, of those sacred 
ties by which you are now united? Life is 
the dressing room for eternity. We are called 
to put off the old man, with his deeds, and to- 
put on the Lord Jesus Christ ; to put on the- 
whole armour of God ;— and we need it in the 
warfare to which we are called ; we cannot 
stand without it. My dear friends, endeavour 
to strengthen each other in God* Pray toge- 
ther ; converse freely on your helps and hin- 
de ranees-. You may be made to each other 
spiritually that which will secure the constant 
smile of Heaven on your union* Human life- 
is, at the best, but a chequered state ; yet* 
foolish as we are, we look for rest when we 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 167 

should prepare for war ; expecting our happi- 
ness to arise from having every thing accord- 
ing to our own wish, rather than in resigna- 
tion to the will of Him who sees what will 
eventually be best for each of us, and who gives 
caustics or cordiaJs, as his wisdom directs, for 
our good. It is at the Saviour's feet alone that 
we can learn the lessons on which depend our 
present and eternal happiness. 

" Here, at a distance from the dissipation 
occasioned by too much intercourse with the 
creatures, and gathered in, from the hurry and 
bustle of our own spirits, to a sacred attention 
to our Divine teacher, we hear the voice which 
speaks reproof direction, and comfort ; and the 
more we cultivate this spirit, the better shall 
we be able to profit by all the outward helps 
that surround us, 

" May every covenant blessing be the por- 
tion of my friend ] Thus prays her affec- 
tionate E. Ritchie/' 

To the same friend she again writes : — 

"Bristol, 1799. 

" Sick rooms, dying beds, and performing the 
last offices of friendship to departed and de- 
parting friends, have prevented my congratu- 
lating my dear friends on the mercies vouch- 
safed to them. Permit me now to tell you, we 
rejoice in all your joy. 

" Within the last fortnight, six persons have 
been summoned from this society to Abraham's 



168 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

bosom. Dear Mrs. Johnson I was much with. 
Toward the last I seldom left her, either night 
or day. Her end was what you might expect, 
at the termination of a fifty -five years' close walk 
with God. She suffered much in body ; but 
all was peace within. Never did a pining 
exile long to be recalled from banishment, or a 
weary traveller to reaeh a beloved home, more 
than she did to burst the shell, and spring into 
the fulness of that life of which she had so 
largely been partaking while in a prison of 
clay. About two hours before her departure, 
she attempted to say, 'I have fought a good 
fight;' but her breath failed, and she could not 
proceed. An hour after, she cried out, < Come* 
Lord! come! come!' — and a little after, 
'Lord!* — with which word she sunk into the 
bosom of her God. 

" With good old Mr. Durbin I also spent 
some hours very profitably. He told me, that, 
when only sixteen years of age, he and several 
serious young men used to meet together, in a 
kind of religious society, before Mr. Wesley 
visited Bristol. When he came, they invited 
him to meet with them, and he proved a second 
Peter to these Corneliuses. Some of them be-- 
came the first members of the Methodist so- 
ciety in that city. Mr. D. added, * I now feel 
eternal life abiding in me. I know in whom I 
have believed, and he will keep what I have 
committed unto him.' He was eighty-eight 
years of age. Several others are on the 
wing." 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 169 

It is scarcely possible to read these repeated 
instances of the triumph of Christianity over 
man's mortal foe, without joining with the 
Church of England in the devout language of 
her communion service : — " We bless thy 
holy name for all thy servants departed this life 
in thy faith and fear ; beseeching thee to give 
us grace so to follow their good examples, that 
with them we may be partakers of thy heavenly 
kingdom." 

To the same friend she writes thus : — 

" Otley, April, 1800. 
" My path has been a chequered one this last 
year ; and my Lord has called me to pass 
through some such exercises as I never knew 
before. Blessed be his name ! he has been with 
me ; the floods have not overflowed, nor has 
the fire kindled upon me. My God has been 
my refuge, my hiding place, my strength, and 
my salvation. Last July, my dear and only 
brother was suddenly called out of time into a 
blessed eternity. I was at Bristol when the 
awful tidings reached me : but they were as 
unexpected to my dear mother, who resided in 
Otley. Overwhelmed by so sudden a stroke, < I 
became dumb, I opened not my mouth, because 
the Lord had done it.' My heart bled, but my 
will was bowed to his. My health suffered 
much ; and for some months I knew not whe- 
ther my dear mother would not live to see both 
her children called home. About a fortnight 
ago I was sent for from Leeds, to attend the 



170 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

sick room and dying bed of a dear friend. Her 
chamber is often a Bethel : our hearts have 
been filled with the Divine presence while wor- 
shipping before the throne. O, my dear friend, 
live to God, and he will be with you in that 
hour of trial, through which she is now 
passing !" 

To the same : — 

"Bristol, 1801. 
" Your sister, I hear, has gained the port. 
Why do we survive our fellows 1 Only to get 
more fully ready for our change. May the 
intended end be answered, and each of us be 
ripened for heaven ! This, this is the business 
of lifp. ; and, blessed be God ! I feel it is the 
constant desire of my heart. Those words have 
been peculiarly present with me : ' Since by 
man came death, by man came also the resur- 
rection of the dead.' We feel the death spi- 
ritually, and naturally too, when, by its sentence 
executed on the body, our beloved friends are 
taken from us ; and, thanks be to our great 
deliverer ! we feel a little of the resurrection 
spiritually ; but soon our friends shall be re- 
stored. After we, with them, have slept in the 
grave, what a glorious morning shall our eyes 
behold ! Till then, let us live for that world to 
which we are hastening ; every moment com- 
ing for fresh power to Christ, our living head. 
"Affectionately yours, E. Ritchie." 

The following letter from Lady Mary Fitz- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 171 

gerald, on the subject of the many bereave- 
ments mentioned in Miss Ritchie's correspon- 
dence with her friend, Miss Johnson, will be 
perused with interest. It is another specimen 
of the humble, yet elevated, piety which cha- 
racterized this excellent and amiable lady ; 
and it is truly gratifying, as exhibiting re- 
ligion in beautiful combination with exalted 
rank : — 

" London, 1797. 
" My Very Dear Friexd, — A thousand 
thanks for the delightful letter I have just re- 
ceived from you. Glory be to our adorable 
God and Saviour, for all his mercies to his dear 
children ! I rejoice in the happy departure of 
that venerable saint, Mr. Durbin, and those 
others who have followed our beloved Miss 
Johnson in the ways of holiness, and have now 
joined her, and the celestial choir, in singing 
praises to God and the Lamb. O happy those 
who are safe arrived, and behold his glorious 
face ! How one longs to be with them ; and 
to see him without a veil, praise him without 
weariness or interruption, and thank him 
without ceasing ! Surely if such a worm as I 
am permitted to enter in, I shall sing louder, 
and also bring more glory to his mercy, 
patience, forbearance, and long-suffering, than 
any other of the redeemed. My soul pants 
after more gratitude, faith, and love, and hum- 
ble communion with God. Your letter, my 
dear friend, seems to have a little stirred up 



172 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

my cold and languid spirit. O for a deeper, a 
more humbling, sense of my own depravity, 
that I may the more thankfully adore redeem- 
ing love ! 

" I am astonished at the mercy of God when 
I look into myself, and think what I have been ; 
how vile, how careless, how prone to every evil ! 
I am truly ashamed that I still come so far 
short of the glory of God, as well as of the sin 
that accompanies my best actions, and holiest 
duties. Surely I, of all people, may lay my 
mouth in the dust, and cry out, ' Unclean, un- 
clean ; totally depraved, and guilty !' before a 
holy God. I have nothing to plead but mercy, 
— free, boundless mercy, — through the blood 
and righteousness of my adorable Redeemer! 

" Pray for me, my dear friend, that I may 
live to Him whose I am by every tie, and whom 
I wish to serve with a holy obedience. Help 
me to praise him for bearing with such a 
worthless worm as I am for above seventy 
years. O ! I am ashamed to think that I have 
received natural life from him for so long a 
period, and have made so slow a progress in 
the Divine life. May my last days be my best 
days, my holiest, my most devoted days ! 
" Affectionately yours, 

" M. Fitzgerald." 

The following letter, from Lady Maxwell, 
alludes to Miss Ritchie's bereavement in the 
loss of her only brother. Dissimilarity in every 
thing but the one great uniting principle of 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 173 

vital piety will mark the difference in indivi- 
dual character between this writer and the la,<st. 

" Rose Mount, near Edinburgh, 
December, 1799. 

" I feel for dear Miss Ritchie's sore trial ; 
but believe it is her privilege to rise above the 
painful dispensation, and with heart-felt and 
sweet resignation to say, < It is the doing of my 
God, whose will is so precious to me : I cannot 
choose,' — yet feeling tenderly her loss. Apathy 
is no friend to religion. It is in the nature of 
Divine love to rise superior to whatever would 
press it down; it must be above. It is a no- 
ble, generous principle. May this pure love 
flow in copious streams through your soul, and 
daily increase ! Speaking after the manner of 
men, it is indeed a severe stroke to the society ; 
but I see it such an easy matter for the Lord, 
who loves his people, fully and quickly to sup- 
ply the vacancy, that I am not permitted to 
dwell upon it. God is love! What an en- 
dearing character ! I seem to see, and feel, 
that all things may be obtained by prayer, that 
are for the glory of God, and the real good of 
those who belong to him, whether as indi- 
viduals, or as a collective body. 

" Some weeks ago, when at the throne of 
grace, the Saviour said to me, * Whatsoever ye 
ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.' 
These words seemed to set fire to my spirit ; 
multitudes of souls were set before me to pray 
for ; yea, I would have grasped the whole world 



174 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

of sinners, and brought them to the dear Redeem- 
er. Soon after this, when meditating upon the 
wonderful condescension and goodness of my 
Lord, in speaking thus graciously to me who 
am but 'dust and ashes,' he again drew nigh 
to my spirit, and said, ' Ask what ye will in my 
name, and it shall be done for you.' I felt my- 
self lost, and swallowed up in wonder, love and 
praise. No language can express my feelings ; 
but from the holy nearness to Deity with which 
Miss Ritchie is favoured, she can suppose what 
they were. I endeavoured to improve the great 
latitude of prayer given to me ; and have often 
wished that this feeble body would have per- 
mitted my spending nights and days at the 
throne of grace. 

"For many months I have been getting 
nearer to Jehovah. What intercourse with him 
do I enjoy! What holy, reverential awe! 
What depths of love ! What glories open to 
my view ! Eternity alone can unfold the 
wonders of his love to me. Assist me by your 
prayers, that I may be found faithful, fruitful, 
and more useful. 

" I shall be pleased to hear that your grief 
is lost in love and praise ; and that your bro- 
ther's place is well filled up. With Christian 
regard, I remain, 

" Dear Miss Ritchie's friend in Jesus, 
"D. Maxwell." 

In another letter on the subject of Miss 
Johnson's death, Lady Maxwell says, — 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 175 

" I feel my loss. Such a praying friend, and 
deeply experienced Christian, is rarely to be 
met with. But thanks, eternal thanks, to the 
Father of mercies, and God of all consolation, 
who has taught me, and does permit me, to 
come to the fountain. Of late he has brought 
me near to himself. I hope I may venture to 
say, that my prospects widen, and my experi- 
ence deepens. I seem to sink deeper into 
Deity ; and more than ever to lose my will 
in his. I find the will of my God so precious, 
that I hardly know how to form a petition, but, 
' Thy will be done ;' and he is so indulgent, so 
tender toward me, that no language can bet- 
ter express it, than the 2d and 3d verses of 
Isaiah xxvii." 

In July, 1800, Lady Maxwell again addresses 
her friend : — 

" I am pleased to see that the arm which is 
full of power has raised you above the painful 
pressure occasioned by your brother's removal. 
Surely, God delights in the happiness of his 
children. God is love. How deeply have I 
proved this, since my last to Miss Ritchie ! 

" I have been brought sensibly nearer to Je- 
hovah ; and have had more of his fulness poured 
into my soul ; — such deep and intimate fellow- 
ship with him, as no language can express. 
Yet I have no rapturous joy ; my experience 
never runs in this channel. It is all (though 
exquisite enjoyment) a solemn, sacred awe, that, 
as it were, arrests all the powers of my mind, 



176 ME3I0IE OF MRS. MORTOH2R, 

keeps them still as the grave before Jehovah, 
and fills the soul with holy recollection, self- 
possession, and strong attraction to internal 
objects. All this goodness of the Lord has not 
prevented, but rather provoked, the malice of 
the adverse powers, who have done all they are 
permitted to do, to harass me ; but the name 
of the Lord proves a strong tower, to which I 
fly, and they dare not enter. 

" With good wishes for still greater prospe- 
rity to your soul, and success in all your la- 
bours of love, and that the name of our God 
may be glorified from the rising of the sun to 
the going down of the same, I remain, dear 
Miss Ritchie's fellow traveller to Zion, 

"D. Maxwell." 

What an expanse does experimental Chris- 
tianity unfold to the interior eye ! With what 
sublime ideas does it fill the mind ! With what 
objects does it bring it into contact ! On worlds 
and beings of a nobler order, it expatiates in 
lofty contemplation ; it unites in reverent 
homage with adoring angels ; it walks and 
talks with God. How elevated are these privi- 
leges ; yet how veiled from unanointed eyes ! 

Immersed in earthly interests, enthralled by 
needless and by needful cares, how often are 
the higher principles and objects of a Divine 
and an ennobling faith obscured, even to the 
view of those who are convinced of the reality 
of things unseen ! In the preceding instance* 
each internal sense is quickened into vigorous 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 177 

exercise ; all the soul is eye and ear ; the en- 
trance to the holiest is laid open ; and access 
is granted to the spirit, which in silent adora- 
tion listens to the voice that condescendingly 
invites it to draw near, to taste still richer 
blessings, and to receive more copious gifts from 
the full treasures of eternal love. 

Yet to minds thus favoured, who inhale an 
element so pure, and so spiritual, how precious 
is the Word of God ! By this, as in the ba- 
lance of the sanctuary, must every impulse and 
perception of the soul be weighed. Impres- 
sions, feelings, manifestations, must all be tested 
by this standard ; which, while it confounds 
that pride of intellect which delights in appre- 
hending mysteries, and dissolves the fervid 
creations of enthusiasm, establishes upon the 
impregnable basis of Divine truth the genuine 
experience of the devout and upright Christian. 

Nor, while bound to weigh in this sacred 
scale every particle of possessed or of antici- 
pated treasure, are we confined within narrow 
bounds. All that the human capacity, in its 
renovated state, can conceive of God, of holi- 
ness, of heaven, is promised in the holy vo- 
lume of inspiration ; and, by the power of the 
eternal Spirit, shall be unfolded in the believ- 
er's breast. But a docile intellect, and a chas- 
tised imagination, are essential to a reverent 
and an enlightened apprehension of the truth. 
In religion, as in its Divine Author, all is per- 
manent, substantial, solemn ; and with the 
oracles of Scripture will the instructions of the 
12 



178 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

teaching Spirit invariably accord. All that is 
emphatically his work in the human heart will 
be there found to have its prototype and sanc- 
tion ; and will exhibit signs of sterling value, 
in proportion to the strictness of the test by 
which it is assayed. 

Another letter from a correspondent, as un- 
like in intellectual structure to either of the 
preceding ones, as they were to each other, 
may now be seasonably introduced. It is so 
important in its subject, and displays so much 
discernment and sound sense, as to render it 
an interesting specimen of the valuable wri- 
ter's style and cast of thought. The only date 
it bears is " Friday " Neither names nor 
places are specified. 

" I am thankful for my parting interview, 

and for the hearing of Lady M 's letters ; 

although I thought at the time they were so 
greatly beyond me, that I should probably gain 
no good from them. Yet I have since found, 
that they left on my mind a more sublime idea 
of the blessed God, which disposes to adoration 
and worship. I already find, though I go on 
lamely, that the aiming more constantly and 
steadily to seek the face of God, has a good 
tendency ; and I am thoroughly persuaded, that 
no rules about the rest of my conduct can se- 
cure me from evil so effectually. Yet those 
rules are not to be overlooked ; for, my dear 
Miss Ritchie, what shall I say to your friend, 
at whose house we met? I have bean long 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 179 

accustomed to consider her as a very spiritual 
and devoted Christian, who lives near to God 
in prayer, and enjoys abiding peace in his pre- 
sence. This peace, I have always found, (in 
any degree that I could attain to it,) qualifies 
and enables for action. What, then, am I to 
think, when I evidently see that she lives in the 
constant neglect of that most important duty ? — 
I mean the government of her children. Both 
their tempers and health are injured for want 
of discipline ; and thereby their souls. Habits 
of self-will and passion are formed ; no habit 
of self-denial in any kind ; no due arrangement 
of their time, their food, their employment; — 
and it is an evident fallacy to say, that their 
own good sense corrects the turbulence of their 
tempers when they grow older. I saw plainly 
the same fund of self-will in the elder ones ; 
though common pride, from a sense of deco- 
rum, would prevent its breaking out as it does 
in the younger. But I question whether direct 
opposition, however wise, would be borne. Our 
dear friend appears to me to have sacrificed 
what she owes to her children, to her love of 
ease, and of that quietness which holes more 
like spirituality than it is. Has she not, there- 
fore, suffered, for want of having duty clearly 
laid before her in the beginning, and the w T ord 
of exhortation directed to the point where she 
needed it 1 The long neglect of duty has ren- 
dered it now next to impossible to perform it ; 
which is a very serious consideration. I see 
that she onlv looks on the evil and error that 



180 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

lies over against her, as unwise and untempered 
severity, and appears to have no conviction but 
that she fulfils her duty. Her example influ- 
ences others ; and what is truly amiable in her 
seals it. The friends that were there on 
Wednesday said something on the subject, ex- 
actly suited to persuade her that she had taken 
the right method. Yet, one thing convinces 
me that she wants the inward testimony of it ; 
— her mind seems sore at the distant touch of 
reproof. I assure you I could not be much 
with her without great pain. It appears to 
me in a very serious light. My dear Mr. B. 
says, he thinks the maxim, that 6 we are really 
what we are relatively? should be more attended 
to in the Church ; and defect in duty more 
looked to than any frame of mind, which may 
appear very spiritual, but which, in that case, 
must have large deductions. I believe that 
such a rule of judgment would be beneficial to 
many, and would purify others ; and, to per- 
sons entering upon life, it might be, through 
grace, a preservative from wrong conduct. 
There is no doubt, from Scripture and reason, 
that the first childhood is the time for cor- 
rection, in order that authority may be im- 
pressed ; and the custom of enticing children, 
by promises and playthings to do what they 
ought to do at command, is very pernicious : 
it opens a w r ide door for contest, and also pre- 
vents their acquiring the idea of duty, which i3 
the foundation of moral sense, and the best 
preparation for Christianity. 



MEMOIR OF MUS. MORTIMER. 181 

«« I could not but open my heart, in part, to 
5'ou on this subject ; and now, commending 
myself to your best remembrance, remain 

« Yours, <fcc, E. M. Bates." 



CHAPTER V. 

" As the whole attention of life should be to obey 
God's commands, so the highest enjoyment of it must 
arise from the contemplation of his character, and our 
relation to it." — Bishop Butler. 

A new sphere of duty was preparing for the 
subject of these memoirs, which may be said to 
constitute the third period of her valuable life. 
By the gentleman who many years before had 
offered her his hand in marriage, as has been 
previously noticed, she was again addressed ; 
and, former reasons now no longer operating, 
she accepted his proposals ; and consented to 
assume the superintendence of a large and 
rising family. On the first of November, 1801, 
Miss Ritchie was married to Harvey Walklake 
Mortimer, Esq. From this time her residence 
was fixed in London and its vicinity ; and here, 
though called to exercise her talents in a new 
direction, they were not less successfully or 
usefully employed. The domestic circle af- 
forded ample occupation for her time, thoughts, 
and energies ; and though hitherto unpractised 
in these duties, her wisdom, piety, and prudence 
produced the most desirable results. With so- 



182 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

licitous affection she endeavoured to fulfil the 
obligations of those new relationships to which 
she now stood pledged ; and so discreetly did 
she occupy her difficult yet most important 
station, as to secure the cordial love, esteem,, 
and confidence of those who were the objects 
of her kind concern ; from whom she constantly 
received the most sincere, heart-felt, and gra- 
tifying testimonies of that regard and venera- 
tion which her whole deportment tended to> 
inspire. She lived, indeed, before them as an 
exemplary pattern, not of meditative merely, 
but of diligent and active, piety ; nor had the 
sphere of spiritual engagement, in which till 
now she had been occupied, unfitted her for 
those more ordinary cares and duties, whose 
appropriate fulfilment constitutes the order, 
harmony, and satisfaction of social and dames- 
tic life. A sound judgment, induced by obser- 
vation and reflection, regulated her conduct, m 
conjunction with religious principle, in the 
small, as well as in the great concerns of life. 
It is probable that from Mr. Wesley, the vene- 
rable friend of her earlier years, she had learned 
how to acquire that power of self-possession, 
self-control, and general equanimity of temper, 
which she maintained- with such consistency^ 
and by which she was admirably qualified for the 
station now assigned to her by the providence 
of God. Punctuality was essential to the pre- 
vious habits of him whom it had now become 
her duty, as well as her desire, in all things te 
honour and accommodate* This to her was 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 1S3 

no constraint. From a sense of the value of 
time, she had long been trained to its orderly 
arrangement and occupation. She was, there- 
fore, by previous consideration, guarded against 
hurry and embarrassment ; and thus avoided 
that distraction which less systematic conduct 
is but too well calculated to induce. 

The result was favourable to her young 
charge. The minds of her two daughters, es- 
pecially, who were the long-continued and 
more immediate objects of her care, were mo- 
delled on the same principles as her own. In 
early life they embraced religion ; and resolv- 
ed to seek in a course of Christian piety, the 
appropriate and only blessed portion of a spirit 
born for everlasting life. For the guide of 
their youth ; — for her whose instructions, and 
whose discipline, were applied in so wise and 
so salutary a manner to the correction of those 
outbreakings of the fallen nature, which child- 
hood exhibits so early, and which to counter- 
act, requires continued, sedulous, and affec- 
tionate effort ; — for the friend, counsellor, and 
confident of their maturer years ; — they che- 
rished during life the warmest emotions of es= 
teem, affection, and gratitude, and now bedew 
her memory with tears of filial reverence ; re- 
joicing in the delightful anticipation of a 
happy reunion in the paradise of perfected 
bliss, 

Although Mrs. Mortimer's domestic occupa- 
tions were various and extensive, yet they did 
not entirely engross her* She did not neglect 



184 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

to employ those talents which were entrusted 
to her for the benefit of the Church. As the 
leader of a class, she filled, with great effect, 
a most important and responsible department. 
The poor and the sick were objects of her kind 
attention ; and her now augmented means of 
rendering them assistance were to herself a 
source of pleasure and of thankfulness. Nor did 
she, under altered circumstances, less esteem 
or love her friends. Her intercourse with most 
of them, though more occasional and circum- 
scribed, was not relinquished, but either per- 
sonally or by letter confidentially continued to 
the close of life. 

On this important change of circumstances 
she entered, in the full persuasion that she was 
following the course of Divine Providence ; 
and regarded it always as the wise arrange- 
ment of her heavenly Father, thus preparing 
for her, not only a sphere of usefulness, but a 
tabernacle of repose and comfort during the 
later period of her pilgrimage ; when, exempt 
from many previous trials and perplexities, she 
might be tranquilly preparing for her better 
rest in heaven, From a document, contain- 
ing some occasional notices of her external and 
internal state through several subsequent years, 
this evidently appears to have been the con- 
viction of her mind. 

During the autumn of 1803, Mrs. Mortimer 
visited Yorkshire, and has left the following 
record of her journey : — ■ 

" On Thursday, September 15th s I set out 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 185 

for Yorkshire ; and, through the mercy of my 
God, reached Ivy house the next day. Here 
I was informed, that my dear mother had bro- 
ken her arm, and dislocated her hip, by a fall. 
I hastened to Otley, and found her confined to 
her bed ; but in such a spirit as quite surprised 
me. She addressed me thus : 6 Betsey, do 
not fret ! It is all mercy ; it is a blessed af- 
fliction. The Lord does all things well : he 
is good to me. Every body is kind to me. I 
will praise my God !' During the whole of my 
stay, she continued in this spirit. We had 
some comfortable times together. I went little 
out, but to the prayer meetings and class 
meetings. They were refreshing seasons. 

" It pleased God that my mother gathered 
strength. She had scarcely any fever ; her 
pain was much abated ; and as there was a 
great probability of her doing well eventually, 
she did not wish me to stay. On Saturday, 
the 24th, therefore, I left her ; and, after 
spending a day or two at Kirkstall Forge, and 
at Leeds, I turned my face again toward the 
great city ; and on Saturday, October 6 th, 
reached Fleet-street. Truly I may say, 'Thou, 
Lord, hast blessed my going out ; O bless my 
coming in !' My journey has been full of 
mercies. I feel tenderly for my poor mother; 
but the Lord is so abundantly with her that my 
sorrow is mixed with joy. At Leeds, &c, I 
met my dear old Christian friends ; and we 
were refreshed together. 

" October 12th.— My mind has in general 



186 MEMOIR OF MRS, MORTIMER. 

been kept in a spirit of praise since my return. 
I abound in mercies: O that my gratitude did 
but keep pace with them ! I am a helpless 
worm : Lord, strengthen me ! For these two 
days I have been the Lord's prisoner ; but my 
mind is kept at the Saviour's feet. I feel much 
respecting public matters : as a nation we are 
in a perilous state. To whom should we flee 
for succour, but to thee, O Lord ? Do thou 
undertake for us, and let our enemies be put 
to confusion ! 

" November 5th, 1803. — For some days last 
week, my mind was particularly exercised. 
Which way soever I looked, nothing but clouds 
appeared. But God was my refuge ; and I 
found my rest in resignation to his will. 

" November 1st, 1804. — It is three years this 
day since my dear Mr. Mortimer and I took 
each other by the hand, for better for worse. 
I then believed our union to be of God ; and 
expected, if spared, that future Providence 
would manifest to me the completion of it, and 
show that what on that day took place was in 
the Divine order. So it has proved. I thank 
thee, O my most indulgent Lord, for such a 
kind, tender, affectionate, suitable partner ! I 
thought well of him three years ago ; but now 
we have wintered and summered together, I 
see that I knew but little of his real worth, 
He bears with all my weaknesses, watches over 
me in love, and does all he can to promote my 
usefulness ; and our Lord frequently blesses us 
together, in our social approaches to his throne. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTI3IER. 187 

" Soon after I had written the above para- 
graph, dated November 5th, 1803, it pleased 
my Lord to permit me to enter into a painful 
furnace ; but he was with me, and all was well. 
I had a violent inflammation in my left eye. 
It terminated in a collection of matter in the 
ball of the eye. Mr. Ware, an eminent ocu- 
list, used various means to absorb it ; but 
nothing would do, short of a surgical opera- 
tion. This was to me a bitter cup ; but my 
Lord helped me to drink it. The cornea was 
cut ; and though I suffered from blisters, bleed- 
ing, much fever, and extreme weakness, yet 
such was the Divine support afforded to me that, 
if I could not have had the consolation without 
the suffering, most willingly would I undergo 
the one to enjoy the other. My dear Mr. 
Mortimer was kindness itself ; and though I 
was nearly three months a prisoner, yet my 
mercies were such as generally preserved me 
in the spirit of praise to my compassionate 
Lord and Saviour. I expected the loss of my 
eye ; but in this my Lord has dealt with me 
according to his wonted goodness : the sight 
was much impaired, but it has been mending 
slowly for some time, and is now far better 
than I ever expected it to be, though I do not 
suppose it will ever be as usual. But I have 
one good eye ; and if the eyes of my under- 
standing are but more fully opened, I shall 
do well. 

" This day's post brought me tidings of the 
translation of my very dear, my faithful, my 



188 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

beloved friend, Mrs. Crosby, to the kingdom 
of glory. She was remarkably happy all last 
week ; met her class as usual ; was at chapel 
on the Sunday, and in glory before eight o'clock 
in the evening. I had a sweet letter from her 
about a fortnight ago : she said she thought it 
would be her last : so it has proved. I have 
lost a friend who, with more than a mother's 
care, watched over me from the time of my 
first setting out in the heavenly race. Our 
souls were knit together in bonds which death 
cannot dissolve. My loss is great : I loved her 
tenderly. Lord, help me to strive to follow my 
friend to glory ! — She was a burning and a 
shining light. Her life, and her death, glori- 
fied God. [ prayed for a blessing on her poor 
afflicted friend, Miss T. ; and was so impressed 
with a sense of my Saviour's love to her, that 
it was as if he had said to my heart, ' Around 
and beneath her are the everlasting arms.' 

" November 8th. — The Lord keeps my soul 
in perfect peace. I am deeply sensible of my 
own nothingness ; but my Saviour is all in all. 
1 wrote to dear Miss T. ; and though I want 
more power to improve this affecting bereave- 
ment myself, yet I endeavoured to help and com- 
fort her. So it is ;— my old friends are taken, 
and I am left. O that the end for which my 
Lord spares me may be fully answered ! 

<f November 15th. — My God and Father 
deals very bountifully with me : I deserve no 
mercy, and yet he causes my peace to flow 
as a river. For some days I have enjoyed 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 189 

unutterable peace, and such a sense that from 
and through my Saviour all my blessings flow, 
as unites my heart to him in thankful love. 
May I more deeply feel the obligations I lie 
under, and sink into the dust before him ! 

" March, 1805. — Numberless are thy mer- 
cies, O my Lord ! All thy dispensations toward 
me manifest grace and love, without measure 
or end. For some weeks I have felt a growing 
sense of my own helplessness ; but have been per- 
mitted to come to Christ just as I am. I see, 
1 feel, that in him all fulness dwells. Jesus is 
the Divine repository for his Church, and the 
believing soul receives its all from him. He is 
my prevailing High Priest before the throne ; 
and his promises greatly encourage me to 
come to him with humble confidence, for the 
supply of all my wants. 

" December 14th, 1808. — God is love. He 
deals very bDuntifully with a poor worm. 
Since I last recorded his mercies, my mind has 
often been very much tried. Satan has as- 
saulted me with many fiery darts, but the Lord 
has graciously lifted up a standard against him. 
Still I live to praise redeeming love, and my 
soul is kept through my Saviour's power. My 
family mercies are great. It has pleased the 
Lord to call our eldest daughter to seek his 
face. Her heart has obeyed the call ; and, 
after seeking for some time, the Lord has mani- 
fested his pardoning love to her soul. She is 
a pleasant companion to me : I know not how 
to be thankful enough. Our third son, George, 



190 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

is a young man truly devoted to God. He is 
bent on the ministry, and we dare not thwart 
him { because young men whose minds are so 
influenced by Divine truth, as his has been for 
some time, are the fittest subjects for the sa- 
cred office. He is now entered at Queen's 
College, Cambridge ; and I trust will be a com- 
fort to us, and a blessing to many, on a future 
day. 

" February 8th, 1807.— My cup is filled with 
blessings. This year I have enjoyed peace 
within ; and multiplied mercies have been pro- 
fusely showered down upon me. A w r eek ago- 
I walked to town, and was well in body, and 
happy in mind. I called to see a sick person ; 
and, coming down stairs, (it being very dark,) 
I fell, and sadly sprained my foot ; but, I thank 
God, no bone was broken, I have been con- 
fined ever since ; but I see so much mercy in 
the whole affair, that it has afforded me matter 
for praise. My mind is kept ' looking to Jesus ;' 
he is ' full for all of truth and grace.' Yes, 
full, even for me ! 

"February 3rd. 1811.— Yesterday I enter- 
ed my fifty-eighth year. It was a day of hu- 
miliation and comfort. While reflecting on 
the forbearance and mercy exercised toward 
me, my heart was penetrated with thankfulness 
to the God of infinite love. I am unworthy of 
the least of his benefits, and yet he pours upon 
me the choicest favours. For, in the midst of 
kind friends, and all that this world can give, 
my soul seeks and finds its happiness in com- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 191 

munion with himself. The streams lead to the 
fountain. To-day I felt near access to the 
source of bliss, while at the table of the Lord. 
By faith I was enabled to realize my accept- 
ance with the Father, through the sprinkled 
blood ; and waited the fulfilment of the pro- 
mise which invites to more abundant life, 
through him who came to save a world of 
sinners. Amem. Amen. Even so, my 
Lord !" 

An interval of six years elapsed before Mrs. 
Mortimer committed to writing any farther 
record of her internal or external circumstan- 
ces. Her correspondence with her friends will, 
in the mean time, supply some interesting no- 
tices of the direction in which the stream of 
life proceeded in its progress toward eternity. 

The loss of friends, one of the deepest and 
bitterest springs of human sorrow, is the allot- 
ted portion of mortality ; and those who are 
most highly favoured in the possession of earth's 
best but most precarious treasures, must pay 
the price of their enjoyment in the pangs of 
separation, when the whirlwind and the fiery 
chariot come to sever from them those with 
whom, in sweet companionship, they have pur- 
sued their journey through the vale of life. 

Mrs. Mortimer lived long enough to drop the 
far greater number of her early associates by 
the way. Among those who, at this time, made 
their escape from the perils of the wilderness, 
was the devoted Lady Maxwell ; of whose 



192 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

death some interesting particulars are given in 
the following letter from her ladyship's friend 
and relative, Miss Napier : — 

" Edinburgh, July 14th, 1810. 
" Lady Maxwell died on the 2nd instant. 
Her health had declined since November. 
Three cf the most eminent physicians attended 
her, who apprehended no danger till within six 
weeks of her death. She died, blessed woman ! 
as she lived, rejoicing in the God of her salva- 
tion, and in the full prospect of eternal happi- 
ness ! She was quite aware of her situation, 
and told me, from the time she was taken, that 
* death was in the cup ;' but, out of tenderness 
to me, she never touched on the subject till 
within a fortnight of her death ; and from that 
time till she departed, her conversation was 
more like that of an inhabitant of heaven than 
of a terrestrial being. She expired without a 
sigh, struggle, or groan ; which was literally 
an answer to prayer. I had long been her set 
lected and confidential friend, as well as her 
relation, and had lived under her roof with her 
for several years ; so that to me this event is 
most mournful. But I am sensible that the 
change to her is so glorious, that I ought to 
turn my tears into hymns of joy. I endeavour 
to comfort myself by not losing sight of what 
she is enjoying. I doubt not but many hymns 
were sung on her entrance into her heavenly 
Father's kingdom ; and that a host of angels 
conducted her to her King, her Saviour, and 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 193 

her God. Then, then began the glory ! She, 
being crowned with honour and immortality, 
is received at God's right hand, to drink of 
pleasures for evermore. I must remember, too, 
the many, many mercies with which this bitter 
cup is mingled : she did not outlive her use- 
fulness ; her faculties were unimpaired, and she 
went to receive her unspeakable reward before 
the days of old age arrived, in which she would 
have found no pleasure. Her life and death 
are lessons which, I trust, I shall never forget : 
may they be blessed to me, and to all who knew 
or were connected with her ; and may we more 
and more strive to walk, at an humble distance, 
in her steps, that our last end may be like 
hers ] 

" God highly honoured me in appointing me 
to the melancholy duty of attending her. Such 
a deathbed! It appeared like the verge of 
heaven ; like waiting in the sanctuary, sur- 
rounded by angels and archangels ; and above 
all, a place which the presence of God rendered 
sacred. There was never greater lamentation 
than has been made for her by all ranks of 
society. There was a funeral sermon preached 
on the occasion of her death, on Sunday even- 
ing, in her free school ; where she had edu- 
cated nearly eight hundred children, who 
receive a regular course of education for three 
years ; and, when dismissed and fully taught, 
each gets a Bible. This school, by her settle- 
ment, is to exist while time shall last. There 
13 



194 MEMOIR OF 31RS. MORTIMER. 

is to be a funeral sermon also in the church, 
on the same affecting subject, to-morrow/'* 

If a death of dread and terror argues a 
" monstrous life/ 5 does not one so lucid, and 
so glorious, speak the design of life accom- 
plished, and impress the seal of Heaven upon 
a course of piety and virtue, to give efficacy to 
example, and to stimulate survivors to pursue 
with holy zeal and diligence the same safe and 
honourable path ? 

In the year 1814, a scene of domestic afflic- 
tion and bereavement engrossed the solicitude 
of Mrs. Mortimer and her family : it was the 
sickness and death of her youngest son, who 
was attacked with a pulmonary disease, which 
issued in consumption ; and in a few months 
removed him, at the age of sixteen, into the 
eternal world. This painful dispensation was, 
however, mercifully alleviated by the grace 
with which it was accompanied, and through 
which it was sanctified to the final salvation 
of the youthful sufferer. His mother's conver- 
sation, prayers, nnd counsels were greatly 
blessed to him. He called to mind the early 
visitations of the Spirit, and was humbled at 
the recollection of his own unfaithfulness ; in- 
genuously confessing that, through trifling with 
conviction and neglect of prayer, those first 
impressions were effaced, and now his heart 
was hard. 

* For fall infonmtion r^pneting Licly Maxwell, 
s°,8 her Ladyship's Life? and Correspondence, by ths 
K^v. T. Lmcastcr. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 195 

In a letter to Mr. George Mortimer, in which 
Mrs. Mortimer details at length the physical 
and mental circumstances of the afflicted youth, 
she says, — 

" During weeks of slowly. wasting sickness, 
we read the Scriptures and prayed with him 
daily. The Spirit of interceding faith was 
given ; and, though in general he spoke but 
little, yet there were times when he blamed 
himself much for the nonimprovement of the 
opportunities he had enjoyed. We thought it 
our duty to tell him plainly, though affection- 
ately, of his danger ; and advised him, as a 
perishing sinner, to fly to Christ ; adding, « If 
our Lord pardon your sins, and take you to 
glory, you will be happy for ever ;' to which he 
replied, * I have no right ideas of the happiness 
of heaven, nor have I ever thought much about 
it; but I have thought often of the happiness 
and comfort which religious people enjoy here: 
they are the only happy people ; and I have 
always intended to become one of them, some 
time or other ; but so many things have hin- 
dered, that it was always deferred till another 
dav.' At other times he would say, < I know 
I am lost without a Saviour ; but my heart is 
hard : I cannot pray, or keep my mind fixed 
on a subject for any length of time.' Being 
told that * God is rich in mercy,' that he will 
cast out none that come to him ; and exhorted 
to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ that he 
might be saved ; he replied, i I do balieve the 



196 memoir of mrs. Mortimer. 

Scriptures to be true, and that Jesus Christ 
died for sinners ; yet I do not feel the effects 
of this believing which you say I ought to feel.' 
We then endeavoured to explain to him the 
difference between historical faith, and that 
which the Holy Spirit works in the heart of 
a penitent sinner, who cries to God for help ; 
and prayed that our Lord would explain it 
to his heart by blessed experience. One day, 
Dr. Steinkopff favoured us with a call : he 
most affectionately encouraged our poor suf- 
ferer to come to Jesus ; particularly by dwell- 
ing on these words, < Call on me in the day of 
trouble,' &c. James was much affected, both 
while he spoke and prayed ; and, though he 
said little at the time, yet it was evident that a 
powerful impression was made on his mind. 
He now deeply felt his need of a Saviour, and 
was, at length, enabled to * flee for refuge to 
take hold on the hope set before him*' " 

The faith and prayers of his anxious friends 
were, at length, most blessedly met and 
answered ; and the concluding scene was 
crowned with gracious tokens of His presence 
who alone can open springs of consolation in 
the dreary vale of death. 

The last period of his affliction is thus de- 
scribed by Mrs> Mortimer : — " His sufferings 
at. this time were great; but he w r as thankful 
for every thing his sisters or the servants did 
for him, and often expressed his gratitude. On 
the two days preceding his decease he seldom 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 197 

spoke ; and his bodily weakness was such, that 
it seemed scarcely possible the immortal spark 
even if Divinely influenced, would have power 
to declare the loving-kindness of God. We 
often said, « The body is dead because of sin ; 
O let the spirit live because of righteousness !' 
and still, like the man sick of the palsy, we 
continued laying him at the Saviour's feet. 

" About three in the morning of the day on 
which he died, his sister Mary (who with a 
servant was watching with him) came into my 
room, and said, ' There is an alteration in 
James ; I wish you would come in.' 1 went 
immediately, and a more solemn scene I never 
witnessed. Our poor dear child appeared to 
be dying : for some time we knelt in silent 
prayer around his bed : in about half an hour 
he revived a little, and asked, * Is any body 
here V I replied, * Your mother, sister Mary, 
and Kitty, and our precious Saviour is here to 
help you.' Our Lord then unloosed the stam- 
merer's tongue ; he cried out, in broken ac- 
cents, as his breath was almost gone, ' Lord, 
help me ! — O God, have mercy ■! — O God, in 
thy presence is fulness of joy, and at thy right 
hand' — I added, * are pleasures for evermore.' 
He took up the word, and continued, * for ever 
— for ever — for ever — praise !' One began to 
repeat that hymn, 

* O for a thousand tongues to sing/ 

He went on, as well as his almost exhausted 
fereath would permit^— 



198 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

1 My great Redeemer's praise, 
The glories of my God and King, 
The triumphs of his grace.' 

" In these and similar broken accents, many 
of which we could scarcely understand, was 
our dying child permitted, for about forty 
minutes, to add his testimony to the faithful- 
ness of our promise-keeping Jehovah. We 
stood on holy ground: surely, had an infidel 
been present in these sacred moments, he must 
have acknowledged the efficacy of Divine 
teaching ; and that the Gospel, embraced by 
faith, affords that comfort in a dying hour, 
which raises the soul above the worn-out body, 
and opens the kingdom of an inward heaven. 

" He then lay about half an hour without 
speaking ; and, at ten minutes before five, as a 
fresh trophy of our Redeemer's power to save, 
was permitted to enter into his Master's joy, 
aged sixteen years and twenty days. We feel 
ourselves laid under fresh obligations to trust 
and praise our gracious Lord, for this signal 
instance of his goodness and mercy. He has 
heard and answered prayer beyond our expec- 
tations. He is faithful. O that we may trust 
him, and praise him, until we see his face 
without a veil between!" 

Others of her family Mrs. Mortimer has pre- 
viously noticed, in whom she found cause for 
the greatest thankfulness, as described in the 
preceding narrative, on account of their deci- 
ded choice of that religion whose " wavs are 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 109 

ways of pleasantness, and all whose paths are 
peace." In the case of this youth she had 
the satisfaction to see her prayerful and affec- 
tionate solicitude rendered, through the Divine 
blessing, effectual to his conversion, to the 
preparation of the spirit for its conflict with 
the final enemy, and for a happy and trium- 
phant entrance into his Redeemer's joy. 

In the spring of the following year, another 
golden link was wrenched from the chain of her 
early friendships. The sad catastrophe of the 
death of the amiable, pious, and affectionate 
Lady Mary Fitzgerald was communicated to 
Mrs. Mortimer, in the following letter from her 
friend, John Pearson, Esq., surgeon : — 

u Golden Square, Sunday, April dth, 1815. 
" My Dfar Madam, — I do not know whe- 
ther you have heard that the warfare of our 
dear, invaluable friend Lady Mary Fitzgerald 
is ended, and that she has entered into the joy 
of her Lord. That such an event should have 
taken place, at her advanced period of life, was 
to be expected ; but the manner and circum- 
stances of her departure were most mournful 
and calamitous. She was burned to death by 
her gown taking fire, last night between 
nine and ten o'clock. 1 saw her before eleven, 
but she had then no pulse ; and from the extent 
of the injury I could form no reasonable ex- 
pectation of her surviving. She died about 
six o'clock this morning. I hope that she did 
not suffer much pain, the magnitude of the 



200 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER, 

injury destroying the acuteness of the sensa- 
tions ; and I administered wine and laudanum 
in such quantities as greatly to mitigate her 
sufferings, without impairing the powers of her 
understanding. The perpetual state of in- 
quietness in which she continued did not per- 
mit much to be said ; but she exhibited the 
same kind, gentle, affectionate spirit which 
predominated in all her conduct. Lord and 
Lady Liverpool, General Phipps, and Mr. anoj 
Mrs. Augustus Phipps, were with her till a short 
time before her departure. 

" Although we must feel the loss of so excel* 
lent a lady, and so bright an example of what 
Christianity was in its best days> yet we can 
not greatly mourn, that she has exchanged a 
state of imperfection for a crown of glory ; a 
world from which her heart had long been 
weaned, for the presence of her dearest Saviour* 
and the possession of a heavenly inheritance. 
She was an incarnate angel ; and she is now a 
glorified spirit, partaking of the fulness of that 
blessedness of which she had been favoured with 
so many foretastes. May we, my dear madam, 
be ' followers of those who, through faith and 
patience, ' inherit the promises.* You have 
happily retreated from the hurry and business 
of the world, to converse with God in retire- 
ment and peace : pray for those who are so 
merged in earthly concerns, that they can 
seldom surmount the oppressive burthen, to 
respire a purer element. None will be more 
thankful for your remembrance of him at those 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 201 

sacred seasons than, my dear madam, youi 
faithful and affectionate friend, 

w Joh^ Pearson." 

A monumental tablet, to the memory of this 
excellent lady, was soon afterward erected in th€ 
Wesleyan chapel, City-Road, which bears the 
following inscription : — 

IX MEMORY 

of the 
Right Honourable Lady MARY FITZGERALD, 

Daughter of John, Lord Heryey, 

Grand-daughter of John, Earl of Bristol, 

and 

Widow of George Fitzgerald, Esq. 

She was 

Born on the 31st day of October, 1725, 

and 

Closed an exemplary and religious life, 

On the 9th day of April, 1815. 



''I know that m3* Redeemer liveth." 



This Monument was erected, 

As a tribute of affection and veneration, 

By her Grand-son, 

Lieutenant-colonei Thomas George Fitzgerald. 

Perhaps more judicious and important ob- 
servations on this painful and appalling event 
will not readily occur, than those offered to 
Mrs. Mortimer, by her friend Mrs. Bates : — 

"Mr. Wilson informed me of Lady Mary's 
happy departure, for such we must term it ; 



202 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

and I call to mind what my dear husband some- 
times took occasion- to inculcate, namely, the 
duty of distinguishing between things as they 
really are, and the stroke they make on our 
imaginations. A fever of some days' continu- 
ance, ending in death, would appear to us a 
natural event ; and though the suffering would 
have been more, the impression would have 
been less. I do not, however, wonder at your 
feeling from the suddenness of the call which 
broke the visible tie of so long a friendship. 

"Permit me to add, what has just struck me 
as a consolatory thought concerning the means 
of this excellent lady's removal. She is so uni- 
versally known, that her death and its circum- 
stances will be much spoken of, and may prove 
the means of saving more than one person's 
life. This we shall not know : but that is no rea- 
son why it should be hidden from the inhabit- 
ants of paradise; who doubtless are instructed 
in many things relative to this world which to 
us would not be suitable. And therefore, some 
time hence, dear Lady Mary, in addition to 
other motives and causes of thanksgiving, may 
be enabled to present very delightful acknow- 
ledgments for the favour of being made useful, 
even in the mode of her death ; which will then, 
in such case, appear to her as particularly suit- 
ed to the benevolence of mind which she had, 
through grace, exercised during life. 

"I think Mr. Mortimer sees, as every body 
does who has seen somewhat of this world, that 
it is a special privilege to be of any use in it. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 203 

To do mischief, to do much that comes to no- 
thing, — this is common and easy. We may 
run in circles, and think we move ; bat we move 
and make no progress. Persons unknown, much 
in prayer, self-denial, and contrition, may do 
more than many out-door labourers. It is com- 
mon for the people of the world to talk about 
doing good, as if it was something ready at hand, 
which they could set about whenever they had 
leisure and inclination, at least with the help 
of a little money, which, being the sinews of 
worldly activity, they suppose can do any thing. 
Whereas, it cannot be too often inculcated, that, 
without leave from Him who alone introduces 
good of any kind into the present state, they 
may throw about money, and run to and fro, 
and after all increase nothing but confusion and 
mischief. But 'He giveth his beloved,' we say, 
* sleep:' (Psalm cxxvii. 2 :) I should say, * the 
double portion ;' that is, the portion of the first- 
born, thus enabling and permitting him to help 
his brethren. But this is a matter of favour, to 
be sought for, and received, and used as such, 
or else it will soon be forfeited." 

Extracts from several other letters received 
by Mrs. Mortimer, from this intelligent lady, 
may here, w r ith propriety, be introduced : — 

"I returned to Mr. P. the third volume of 
Barruel. It is not a book one would wish to 
buy, and yet one might desire to read it. A 
single reading is enough ; for we wish not too 



204 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

often or too long to contemplate evil. But evil 
is the ground of prayer, and therefore must be 
known, to be prayed against. 

"All burthens are laid on Mrs. H. It is a 
great and special favour to be able to keep clear 
of any which are not the burthens of duty. I 
cannot think the latter are really oppressive. 
f suppose they rather tend to keep those per- 
sons steady in the right path who bear them 
properly : it is true, they may feel them heavy, 
but they do not stop them on their road. May 
we not judge it lawful to endeavour to cast off 
all those that do ? I am inclined to think that 
our popular doctrines respecting trials and suf- 
ferings want revising. Truth and error are 
mingled in them, and the truths have preserved 
the errors. I suspect that there is a property 
of error which renders the coalition dangerous ; 
namely, that insensibly it corrodes the truth as 
rust does metals, changing that part to which it 
adheres into its own nature, or, in other words, 
destroying it ; for error, strictly speaking, has 
no substance. 

" I have already been making some arrange- 
ments with the pleasing idea of your seeing 
them next year. We are permitted to make 
little perspectives, if they are but parts of the 
beautiful whole promised under the name of 'an 
inheritance.' 

"My visit to London was a period of some 
value to myself, being rich in mercies and in- 
struction. [ feel desirous, as people are in the 
evening of the day, to make use of all the day 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 205 

light. Time appears to me more than ever va- 
luable. The house in which my spirit dwells 
will swiftly and perceptibly get oat of repair by 
reason of age : both labour and rest will be im- 
peded by infirmity; and I expect more and 
more to feel that when the mind would apply 
to thought, and the heart to feeling, the body 
will say, < Some of my tools are broken, others 
are blunted, and I am tired.' O what pity that 
strength of thought or feeling should, in the 
days of youth, flow away in vanity ! What a 
loss of happiness, as well as profit ! I am per- 
suaded a day of trial is coming on the Church. 
Some views deepen in my mind: they have 
been long forming, and have arisen gradually, 
and almost imperceptibly to myself, from being 
for many years chiefly engaged with the Scrip- 
tures, and reading little of other books. 

" It may be admitted as an axiom, that every 
soul reflects the glory it receives, if (that is, 
while) it remains faithful. For if it absorbs 
the glory, it appropriates that which no creature 
can, with impunity, make its own. And here 
I may be permitted to say, that some, like the 
apostles, are lights of the world ; others, lights 
of different Churches, of nations, of cities, of 
villages, of families. Yet herein, who occupies 
such and such a province, or situation, we are 
incompetent judges. It may be, that some 
burning light, hidden by providential circum- 
stances from men, may (bear with the word) 
illuminate angels! They, as God's servants, 
ministering in his kingdom, must have their 



206 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

helps to progress, as a reward, at least, of love, 
though not of probation. 

" If it was Messiah's meat and drink to do his 
Father's will, and if it is that of the holy angels 
to do it, as manifested to them by him, surely 
the reflections of his glory are a light in which 
they rejoice ! The phrase, ' from glory to glory,' 
conveys a delightful expression of the increas- 
ing approbation wherewith souls are beheld in 
their progressive assimilation to Him who is the 
only authorized ' image of God,' and in whom 
the full delight and complacency of the Tri-une 
Deity rest by ineffable union. This surely was 
an eminent part of the joy set before the Sa- 
viour, that he might render the creatures of 
God objects of Divine complacency, and present 
the creation, as well as his own sacrifice, 'holy, 
acceptable to God, for a sweet-smelling savour.' 
I wish you to take up the subject for meditation. 
St. Paul, in Ephesians v, gives us full authority 
so to do. Artfully has a veil been woven by 
evil spirits to obscure this glory. They have 
woven it for the use of the Church." 

This correspondence exhibits such a com- 
bination of spiritual and intellectual vigour, that 
it must afford pleasure and instruction to every 
Christian mind. 

An extract from a letter, addressed to Mrs. 
Mortimer, by her valuable and highly-esteemed 
friend, Miss Sarah Wesley, daughter of the 
Rev. Charles Wesley, will also be found pecu- 
liarly interesting ; not only as an expression 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 207 

of enlightened individual sentiment, upon a sub- 
ject of very considerable importance, and as 
an exemplary exhibition of the wise and salu- 
tary influence of strict parental discipline ; but, 
in these days of slanderous insinuations, as a 
valid and authentic document, of authority suf- 
ficient to refute invidious calumny in its vain 
endeavours to asperse the memory of the sainted 
dead.* To Mr. Charles Wesley, the brother 

* The unfounded slander to which the author here 
refers, imputed to Mr. Charles Wesley the incredible 
inconsistency of having sanctioned his two sons, justly 
celebrated for the early development of their eminent 
musical talents, in giving private concerts at his house 
on Sunday evenings. That the Christian Sabbath was 
never so shamefully desecrated at the house of this 
venerable minister, there is abundant proof. The ca. 
lumny has in some quarters been supposed to h»ve been 
repeated by Cowper, in his u Progress of Error;" and 
the severe reproof which he there administers to a 
M fiddling priest." whom he introduces in that poem 
under the name of " Oeciduus," has been applied to 
Mr. C. Wesl y. The Facts, or supposed factsT, on which 
the poet really grounded his strictures, are stated at 
same length in a letter from him to Mr. Newton, lately 
published m the first volume of Cowper's Life and 
Works, edited by the Rev. T. S. Grimshawe ; in which 
Lady Austen is mentioned as the authority on which 
they rested. That some popular divine of that day 
wis guilty of the crime imputed, is not unlikely ; but 
t!i ;t the brother of the Founder of Methodism was the 
individual intended by the appellative, " Occiduus," is 
an assumption which seems to have been much too 
hastily adopted. Such an application of it is certeinry 
a.1 variance with the whole character of Mr. C. Wes- 
1 ■}• ; and there are sjveril parts of the description of 
Oeeidmis, both in the poem and in the letter, which 
could not by possibility have any reference to him, ex- 



208 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

and the coadjutor of the venerable Founder of 
Methodism, the religious world at large is too 
much indebted, for his inimitable Christian 
psalmody, as well as for his arduous, extensive, 

cept on the hypothesis of a criminal ignorance, or of a 
malignity still mora censurable. That the enemies of 
the Wesleys, ever on the watch in that day for the ma. 
terials of detraction, imagined that Cowper's " Occi- 
duus" was meant to satirize the man whom they un- 
justly depreciated, and represented his poem as sanc- 
tioning their slander, is very likely. If, for a moment, 
it could be conceded that Cowper himself meant any 
such application of his sarcasm, or that Lady Austen 
did really affirm of Mr. C. Wesley what the poet rep- 
resents her to Mr. Newton as having affirmed concern- 
ing the fashionable and hypocritical Occiduus. or that, 
with any such understanding of her allusion, the reve- 
rend and highly-respectable editor of the Works and 
Life could permit himself to give renewed currency to 
the imputation, no language could be too severe to 
mark such flagrant violations of truth and charity. 
The whole rests, even in that case, on the gossip of 
the day, and on the individual authority of Lady Austen ; 
and is so perfectly contradictory to the weight of evi- 
dence in the opposite scale, that from obstinate igno- 
rance or inveterate prejudice alone can it hope to re- 
ceive either entertainment or respect. There is in 
righteousness and holiness an inherent moral power, 
infused into it by Heaven ; through the energy of 
which it repels and surmounts the impotent assaults 
of detraction and envy ; and to this power, in the pre- 
sent instance, the appeal might be safely made. But, 
more direct and immediate testimony is within the 
reach of those who rather " rejoice in the truth," than 
in the dissemination of calumnious reports against holy 
and. honourable mm. In addition to the decisive tes- 
timony of Mr. Charles Wesley's own family, and friends, 
who had the means of knowing psrfectly both his 
sentiments and his conduct, in regard to the subject 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 209 

and successful ministerial labours, not to feel 
an interest in ascertaining the purity and in- 
tegrity of the principles and the spirit by which 
he was actuated in social and domestic life. 

now under consideration, he himself may be also sum- 
moned in evidence. The light in which he regarded 
all theatrical exhibitions, and places of public amuse- 
ment, Ranelagh and Vauxhall Gardens especially, may 
be learned from one of his hymns, written to be used 
in public worship, and often, during his life, sung by 
crowded congregations. The peculiar service for which 
it was composed, is called a " watch night;" one which, 
although well known to primitive Christianity, is in 
its present observance, nearly confined to that con- 
nection to which he belonged ; of which he was not 
only a distinguished ornament, but which he eminently 
contributed to establish. The whole hymn is entirely 
to the purpose ; but it is too long to be inserted here. 
Its immediate subject is, the contrast between a reli- 
gious assembly, for the purpose of solemn midnight 
worship, and those worldly, vain, and dangerous asso- 
ciations, to which he has been falsely charged with 
giving his sanction and encouragement. To the in- 
fluence of the " god of this world" he ascribes all these 
delusive and vicious pleasures, and, in the fourth verse, 
thus expresses himself: — 

u The civiller crowd, 

In theatres proud, 

Acknowledge his power, 
And Satan in nightly assemblies adore. 

To the masque and the ball 

They fly at his call ; 

Or in pleasures excel ; 
And chant in a grove* to the harpers of hell." 

That in the teeth of a judgment so solemnly, strenu- 
ously, and authoritatively given to the Church, and to 

* " Ranelagh Gardens, Vauxhall, &c." — This note 
is appended to the hymn in Mr. Wesley's collection. 
11 



210 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

On the subject of Miss Wesley's communica- 
tion to her friend, — in spite of his own ener- 
getically-expressed sentiments, the evidence of 
a godly and devoted life, and the testimony of 
his personal friends, of their connections, and 
of the members of his own family, all strongly 
contradictory of a weak, ill-authenticated, and 
iniquitous slander, — his conduct has been un- 
charitably impugned. This circumstance stamps 
peculiar value on the indubitable testimony of 
a witness, not subpoenaed for the occasion, but 
whose evidence was long since spontaneously 
afforded in reference to other ends and pur- 
poses, and who was herself the subject of those 
kind and wise restrictions, which she here so 
gratefully and so judiciously commends. The 
letter bears no farther date than April ISth ; 
but, from internal circumstances, it appears to 
have been written about the period at which 
it is here introduced. Miss Wesley says* — 

" It is difficult to preserve young people from 
dissipation when they have fashionable con- 
nections ; and this is a reason for the seclusion 

the world, any man, possessing even a common, much 
less a Wesley an, share of intellect, should have com- 
mitted himself to such conduct, or such counsels, as 
are laid to the charge of the person designated " Occi- 
duus," by Lady Austen, is too incongruous to obtain 
credence from consistent and reflecting minds. The 
fur and charitable inference from the whole is, that 
Mr! C. Wesley was not the person intended in the de- 
scription of Occiduus. The tale respecting Sunday 
concerts is also contradicted, upon the competent and 
undeniable evidence of his family and connections. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 211 

practised by the Moravians. The Methodists 
have less of it, not only because they are a 
more numerous body, bat from more expanded 
principles. Yet I have seen and felt the evil 
of extensive intercourse ; and have been tempt- 
ed to wish that I had been bred in a settlement 
of the retired pious. 

"Your daughters have high privileges, and 
seem to value them. Your circle is without 
shares ; but they must know more of the evils 
of life, fully to comprehend their happiness. 
Poor Hannah More would never have encoun- 
tered the persecutions and calumnies, which 
are pointedly revived in a review of her last 
work, if she had not once lived among the 
players. How much do I owe to my dear fa- 
ther for checking my theatrical taste when I 
was a child, and evincing to me his heart's 
sorrow, on seeing my desire to go to such ex- 
hibitions ! This is the chief part of my youth. 
which I recollect with delight ; for I obeyed 
him, without conceiving the evils of a play- 
house, and left my drama unfinished, which I 
began to write at eleven years of age." 

The testimony of another member of Mr. 
Charles Wesley's family (his son Samuel) 
strongly corroborates the above satisfactory 
statement. In a letter, dated January, 1797, 
speaking of his early years, he says, " We 
were kept closely at home, that we might es- 
cape the corruptions of the world. Lord 
Mornington, who was a passionate lover of 



212 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

music, said, we had no occasion to go into the 
world, for the world would come to us." 

To rescue a venerable and widely-influential 
name from the imputation of having, either by 
connivance or by sanction, given encourage- 
meet to the sinful pleasures of a misguided, un- 
reflecting, wicked world, is not irrelevant to 
the important object of the present work. 
And to bear a direct and decisive testimony 
against the magnitude of error and of evil, 
implied in the attempt to desecrate religion by 
amalgamation with the trifling, turbid, low 5 
licentious recreations of unhallowed minds, is 
strictly consonant with its avowed design. A 
vacillating state of mind, on subjects of this 
nature, has weakened many a holy purpose, 
and seduced the half-emancipated spirit back 
again into the toils of sin. Youth and inex- 
perience, influenced by ill-directed counsel, 
warped by bad example, or beguiled, like Eve, 
through vain and curious eagerness to know 
the nature and the curse of evil by the loss of 
good, may imagine fondly, that to tread the 
precincts of destruction, and then retrace their 
steps in safety, involves no arduous, no uncom- 
mon task. But let them learn, by the myriads 
who have preceded them and failed in the peril- 
ous attempt, that it is dangerous to make an 
experiment in which they are sure to suffer 
loss, should they even escape with life. Some, 
indeed, who would not, without much compunc- 
tion, violate a strict, express command of God, 
yet, being feeble and of undecided puroose, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 213 

endeavour to restrain the accusations of an 
unapproving conscience, by the fallacy, — that 
no explicit prohibition of such pleasures and 
indulgences is found in Holy Writ. In this, 
as in a thousand other instances, the judgment 
is perverted by depraved affections and a way- 
ward will. To the upright mind it cannot fail 
to be perceptible as is the light of heaven, that 
in the Scriptures are contained those principles 
which are to regulate, in detail, every motion 
of the heart, as well as the whole course of 
conduct, and the habitual practice of the life. 
These, by the truly humble and inquiring spirit, 
will be diligently sought for, understood, em- 
braced, and loved. Then, when the eye is 
single, the path of duty will be clearly seen : 
The conscience, tender and enlightened, will 
shrink instinctively from contact w T ith tempta- 
tion ; and the " narrow way," in preference 
chosen, and pursued with steadfast and uncom- 
promising perseverance, will be found to yield 
at present such pure and elevated pleasures 
as God's holy word will sanction, and a regene- 
rated heart and mind approve : w T hile, in the 
end, it will conduct to that more blessed state 
of light and glory, where enjoyments, rich and 
permanent as their exhaustless Fountain, shall 
refresh and satiate those faithful spirits who, 
with a noble heroism, ventured to renounce 
the vanities and follies of the world, that they 
might seek and find their perfect and supreme 
felicity in God. 

Mrs, Mortimer's letters to her friends* about 



214 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

this period, will be found truly valuable. They 
not only mark her progress through several 
subsequent years, but also show that the flame 
of piety continued to burn with pure and stead- 
fast lustre on the consecrated altar of her meek 
and loving heart. To her friend, Mrs. J., she 
writes from 

" Windsor, September 12th, 1815. 
"My Dear Friend, — You know that we left 
home for change of scene and air. My dear 
Mr. Mortimer needed both ; and, I believe, we 
were directed to the right place. The air is 
very good, and the walks remarkably fine. Our 
lodging is near the Long Walk, and within a 
mile of Frogmore. The trees afford us shade, 
or the hills prospect, as we are disposed to vary 
the scene ; and it has pleased our Lord to give 
his blessing ; so that I think Mr. Mortimer is 
as well as I have known him to be for many 
years. We have enjoyed our little excursion, 
and hope to return home grateful to God for 
multiplied mercies. My dear friend, let us look 
at our blessings : if we were not half asleep, we 
should be all praise ! May he quicken all our 
drowsy powers ! A sense of the Saviour's love 
is the main spring which sets all other springs 
in motion ; and the blessed promise is, that the 
Holy Spirit shall take of the things of Christ, 
and show them to us. This soul-quickening 
principle will prove a powerful antidote, and it 
is the only one I know* against the opiates of 
this life. Without this, lawful things are often 



MEMOIR OF MBS. MORTIMER. 215 

hurtful ; and for want of it multitudes are to- 
tally sunk into, and swallowed up in, the things 
of time and sense. You, my dear friend, have 
felt the blessed influence of this love ; and why 
should you not habitually live under it? It is 
your Father's good pleasure to give you the 
kingdom; press into it, and see that you abide 
there. Cry mightily to God for an increase 
of faith; and while so doing, use that power to 
embrace the promises which you already have. 
God will then give you his blessing, and you 
shall see his great salvation." 

To the same friend she afterward writes 
thus; — ■ 

* July 8t7i 9 1816. 
" I am glad that though space separates us, 
we can meet in spirit. Yes, my dear friend, 
we can meet at His feet in whom all fulness 
dwells, and dwells for needy, helpless souls, such 
as you and I. Blessed be God ! His ear is open 
to hear your prayer, to redress your grievances, 
and to supply your wants. His presence fills 
all space; and faith finds him every where. 
May we feel its realizing effects more power- 
fully! I hope you have more settled weather 
than we have. Here it is much like April,— 
heavy showers, and sunny gleams: a just pic- 
ture of human life : some have all storm ; and 
very few, if any, all sunshine ! but, thank God ! 
there is a shelter ; a hiding place from the wind : 
into this may we ever run, and feel rest in re- 
signation to our Father's will ! Wishing you 



216 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

all the good the blessing of God can give on 
the means you now enjoy, I remain 
" Most affectionately yours, 

"E. Mortimer." 

On February 2d, 18 IT, occurs the last of 
those memoranda which Mrs. Mortimer occa- 
sionally made of the Divine dispensations to- 
ward her, whether in providence or in grace. 
"This day," she says, "I have entered into the 
sixty-fourth year of my age. My soul, prostrate 
in the dust, adores and loves the God of all 
grace. I am still kept a monument of his mercy ; 
he has often led me through the fire, and through 
the water; but his hand has graciously upheld 
me, and brought me through unhurt. In Au- 
gust last, I had a nervous fever; brought on, I 
suppose, by conflict of mind, endured chiefly 
for a young relative who was apparently near 
death, and who was totally insensible of his 
danger : he was delirious, and my feelings on 
his account were inexpressible. My Lord heard 
prayer; restored the youth j and by degrees 
raised me up again. But it was a time of close 
exercise, and a means of teaching me such les- 
sons of sympathy with people whose nervous 
system is at all unstrung, as I never was capa- 
ble of before. I am wonderfully recovered ; 
and while to-day looking back on what my Lord 
had led me through, I was deeply humbled. 
Goodness and mercy have followed me all my 
days ; and though the last has been a trying 
year, yet it has been a good one. I feel in- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 217 

creasing deadness to the objects of time and 
sense, and a full determination to live for eter- 
nity; but I seem now to have only the shreds 
of time. Most of my friends and relatives are 
gone. Dear Mrs. Fletcher, my sister-in-law, 
and many others, have gained the port. Lord, 
help me to get fully ready, that, when thou 
callest, I may give up my accounts with joy !" 
In the spirit of these valedictory observations 
she calmly sunk into the vale of years ; yet, at 
the time when they were written, she retained 
her various posts of duty, and occupied a fore- 
most place in efforts of benevolence and zeal. 
Her domestic cares had lessened ; and this year 
a breach was made, which, though conformable 
to the arrangements of a wise and gracious 
Providence, was yet acutely felt by the affec- 
tionate and happy circle of those on w T hom the 
stroke of partial separation fell. The following 
letter, from Mrs. Mortimer to Mrs. Holland, 
will explain the whole l: — 

"July 24th, 1817. 

" My Dear Mary,— Your welcome letter not 
only reached my hands, but drew from my heart 
grateful acknowledgments to the God of all our 
mercies. I rejoice in your comfort ; and pray 
Him who alone can do it, to bless all your 
blessings, and sanctify every creature enjoy- 
ment. 

" I can scarcely tell you what we all felt after 
you left us. We saw the hand of God in your 
removal, and felt resignation to the Divine will ; 



218 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

but Mr. Holland had made a chasm in our so- 
cial circle which we deeply felt. Though poor 
Eliza needed comforting herself, she strove to 
comfort her parents. The day after you left 
River-Terrace, she told me, in a kind and affec- 
tionate manner, * Mother, I can never be to my 
father and you what Mary has been, but I will 
try to do what I can to fill her place;' and she 
has fulfilled her promise, beyond our expecta- 
tions. Blessed be God, we live in peace and 
love, and the God of love and peace is with us! 
You are often in our minds, and we are thank- 
ful that we can meet before our Father's throne. 
He is our centre, and the nearer we live to 
him, the nearer we shall feel to each other. 
You remember the simile of the circles drawn 
round the hill : on which side soever we ascend, 
if we keep ascending we shall get nearer to each 
other, as we get nearer to the top. I am glad 
that Mr. Holland and you feel agreed to seek a 
closer walk with God, Lady Maxwell, in one 
of her letters, says, 'In secret prayer and medi- 
tation I get enlarged views of the salvation of 
God; and what is thus discovered to me faith 
goes out after, and according to its strength 
are its returns. This, my dear Mary, is the 
way : may the God of love help you to walk in 
it ! Cultivate a life of faith, think much of it, 
and talk often between yourselves of the objects 
of faith. Use all the power you now feel, to 
embrace revealed truth. Love and heavenly 
Handedness will follow. The Christian only 
ghines by reflection ; and therefore, if he would 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 219 

fulfil the character which St. Paul ascribes to 
him, he must live under the direct influence of 
the Sun of righteousness. Wherever you are, 
and whatever you feel, endeavour to learn the 
happy art of coining to Jesus: he is always 
waiting, and always willing, to receive you ; 
for with him is no variableness, neither shadow 
of turning. His one will toward his creatures 
is, to save them from their sins, and to raise 
them out of the ruins of their fall. lam glad 
that you give us so particular an account of 
the means of grace which Raithby affords ; use 
them in faith, and you will prosper. We may 
live to God wjierever his providence places us, 
if it be not our own fault. Large towns have 
their advantages, — popular preachers, and mul- 
tiplicity of means ; but when too much depend- 
ed upon, they rather stand in the way of com- 
munion with God, than help the souls that are 
favoured with them into the spirit of simple, 
humble love. In the country, to a reflecting 
mind, every thing becomes a preacher. W r e 
may learn 

From birds, and fruits, and plants, and flowers, 
How to employ the happy hours.' 

The few and homely means of grace afforded, 
if used in a right spirit, will send the soul to 
God in secret ; and the lessons learned from 
the Holy Spirit, upon our knees, are often bless- 
ed ones. May my dear Mary, and the partner 
of her days, learn many of them, daily feeling 
the truth of that promise, 'All thy children shall 



220 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the 
peace of thy children !' 

" Your father and Eliza join me in kindest 
love to you both. That the best of blessings 
may rest on you, my dear Mary, is the prayer 
of your affectionate mother, 

" E. Mortimer." 

The following letter, from Mrs. Dorothea 
Whitmore, one of Mrs. Mortimer's more re- 
cent but highly valuable and distinguished 
friends, was written on the same occasion, and 
will evince that kind and Christian sympathy 
which is an essential property of true friend- 
ship : — 

" Though scarcely any change, either as to 
outward circumstances or inward feelings, has 
taken place in regard to myself, since my last 
prolix account, yet I know there has been a 
change in yours ; and I desire to assure you 
that this has not passed by me unfelt and un- 
heeded. While I have given my sincerest 
prayers and wishes to Mrs. Holland, for as 
much happiness as the Lord can safely bestow 
in her new situation ; and, above all, that he 
will render both her natural and acquired en- 
dowments, by his grace, eminently useful in 
his service; — I have, perhaps, felt the more 
for you, and the rest of the family, upon this 
occasion, because, from being better able to 
realize your feelings, I can more fully enter 
into them. It seemed to me, that while your 
love for another would lead you to rejoice in 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 221 

thus consigning an object of tender regard to 
that protection and support which the provi- 
dence of God peculiarly assigns to the weak- 
ness of woman, and while you would also be 
happy in sending one of your children into a 
wider range of usefulness in the vineyard of 
the Lord, you must, at the same time, feel your- 
self bereaved of a comfort and a prop. I know 
you would not be pleased, were I to express the 
sentiments I do most unfeignedly cherish to- 
ward you : but you must permit me to say, that 
I considered how a mother in Israel w r ould feel 
on such an occasion ; and it appeared to me 
that, called to make a sacrifice of natural feel- 
ing, you would do more than sanctify the trial, 
by making a willing offering of your self-gra- 
tification to the Lord, and that you would be 
led to thank him for having one earthly tie 
loosened, that your heart might more simply 
and wholly rest in him. Is not this the great 
lesson of our lives, and is it not the great ob- 
ject of our Father's dealings with us? Our 
souls so cleave to the dust ; we are so tied down 
by every feeling and by every passion, because 
they are directed to earthly objects. These, 
by the wisdom and love of our God, are some- 
times painfully and entirely snapped by death, 
as the still more sorrowful separation ; at others 
they are slackened by the removal of the object, 
as the slighter alienation of affection. But, as 
they have all but one end, so they have but 
one voice : ' Leave your broken cisterns, and 
come unto me:' 'He that drinketh of this wa- 



222 MEMOIR OF MR8. MORTIMER. 

ter shall never thirst.' And yet, my dear 
madam, when we have heard this voice, and 
feel persuaded that we believe it, how difficult 
it is to obey it ! How soon does rejoicing in 
the creature, as well as grieving in the same, 
convince us how imperfectly we have retained 
and obeyed the lesson!" 

To Mrs. Holland Mrs. Mortimer again writes, 
on occasion of the death of that eminent Chris- 
tian and minister, Robert Carr Brackenbury, 
Esq., of Raithby-hall, Lincolnshire. 

"August llih, 1818. 

" We learn from Eliza's letter which has just 
arrived, that dear Mr. Brackenbury has ex- 
changed mortality for life. This accounts for 
our feelings : in the middle of last week we 
seemed to lose our power to pray for the dear 
sufferer; our prayers had no wings except 
those for Mrs. Brackenbury. 

" On Friday, when the news arrived, emo- 
tions, strangely mingled, rilled my mind. I felt 
thankfulness that an old friend, whom I have 
known between forty and fifty years, had reach- 
ed the summit of his wishes, and was now per- 
mitted to enjoy the full fruition of God ; and 
tender sympathy with dear Mrs. Brackenbury. 
The loss she mourns is no common loss: Mr. 
Brackenbury was a tall cedar in the Church, and 
many sheltered under his spreading branches. 
I feel for the Church at large, the neighbour- 
hood, the village, which was honoured with such 
a head ; and particularly for dear Mrs. Brack- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 223 

enbury. May the Lord pour out his Spirit upon 
you all, and sanctify this bereavement ! Yes- 
terday my spirit was much at Raithby. I 
seemed with you in all the means of grace; 
and as it was such a Sabbath as had never been 
known there before, I could not help praying 
that all might profit by the awful solemnity 
which the circumstances of the hall would dif- 
fuse among you. I feel those words of Dr. 
Young : — 

* What means this transportation of my friends ? 
It bids me love the place where now they dwell, 
And scorn this wretched spot they leave so poor.' 

" Give our sympathizing love to Mrs. Brack- 
enbury. May our Lord pour into her bleeding 
heart the oil and wine of his precious love! 
Nothing but more of God can soothe her sor- 
row, or fill the vacuum she feels. Religion was 
never designed to make us stoics, but it was 
intended to sanctify and regulate all our feel- 
ings ; and I have no doubt but he who has 
mixed this painful cup will ultimately bless it 
to her lasting good. 

" Your father, through mercy, is a little bet- 
ter; but the numbness in his limbs continues 
much the same. Give your little Henry a kiss 
for me ; and believe me, my dear Mary, yours 
most affectionately, E. Mortimer." 

The unfavourable state of Mr. Mortimer's 
health, of which an intimation is given in the 
preceding letter, was but the prelude to still 
increasing infirmity ; and Mrs. Mortimer her- 



224 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

self was shortly called to endure the same pang 
of bereavement, under the anguish of which she 
there attempts to console and soothe the spirit 
of her mourning friend. Although not entirely 
laid aside from public engagements, or occa- 
sional intercourse with friends, Mr. Mortimer 
was evidently incapable of effort; and preferred 
the seclusion of his private chamber to con- 
stant association even with the domestic circle. 
He enjoyed, in this retirement, favourable op- 
portunities for prayer, reading, and meditation 
on the Holy Scriptures, which appeared to be 
his favourite occupation. Thus girding up the 
loins of his mind, and trimming his lamp, he 
awaited the approach of the Bridegroom ; and 
happy was it for him that he had been so em- 
ployed, for the cry came suddenly, " Go ye 
forth to meet him !" 

On Monday evening, March 22d, 1819, a 
friend, in whose society he was wont to express 
his pleasure, called to inquire after his health. 
Mr. Mortimer received him with warm affec- 
tion; and said, that on that day he had felt 
himself better than usual, and had enjoyed a 
walk in his garden. For about an hour he 
conversed with cheerfulness and freedom. His 
friend then retired, but had scarcely left the 
house, when the angel of death entered, and 
very shortly executed his commission. 

" About eight years ago," says Mrs, Morti- 
mer, in an obituary of her late husband, insert- 
ed in the Wesleyan Magazine, for the year 
1819, "my dear Mr. Mortimer had a severe 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 225 

and long illness. Since that time he never 
fully recovered his health; but, for the two or 
three last years, was gradually declining, and 
often talked familiarly of death. Sometimes 
he enjoyed sweet peace ; at other times he was 
severely tried. But he was a man of prayer, 
his Bible was his support, and his God his re- 
fuge. Often has he come out of his closet with 
a countenance irradiated by the consolation 
with which his mind had been favoured ; and 
his family can testify that the effects were felt 
by all around him. About a month before his 
death, his medical friends expressed their fears 
as to the result of present symptoms: he re- 
ceived their report with perfect calmness, and 
often said to me, 'You may do so, or so, after 
I am gone ;' but, as he had been in the habit 
of speaking thus, I did not apprehend that the 
awful hour of my present bereavement was so 
near. On Sunday, the 21st, I said, 'What 
shall I read to you V He fixed on a sermon from 
this text, ' What shall I do to be saved V and 
the following clause. He enjoyed it much, and 
wopt tears of affectionate love and gratitude. 
On Monday morning he prayed with his fa- 
mily ; seemed better than usual ; was cheerful, 
placid, and particularly kind ; took his food as 
usual ; and walked twice round the garden. 
About seven o'clock in the evening, while sit- 
ting in his chair, Mr. Mortimer reached out 
his hand, and said, « Help me ! help me!' I 
immediately went to afford him all the assist- 
ance in my power, but it was too late ; be only 



226 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

added; < Let me lie down.' We laid him on the 
sofa : he spoke no more ; but, at half-past nine, 
without a struggle or a groan, his spirit took 
its flight to the regions of bliss, and left us like 
persons in a dream ; for, though I had long an- 
ticipated the painful hour, it came at last so 
suddenly, that all I could do was to say, 'Lord, 
help me ! Thou hast mixed this bitter cup : 
sanctify it to my future good; and help me to 
get fully ready to meet those that are now be- 
fore the throne! Amen, amen/" 

The affectionate attentions of pious and 
sympathizing friends, are, perhaps, the only 
earthly alleviations that the desolated spirit, 
under such circumstances, can receive ; nor 
indeed, is it always greatly susceptible even of 
these, until that voice which said to the tumul- 
tuous waters, " Peace, be still !" shall, in some 
measure, have subdued the agony of grief. 
But He who comforteth the mourners, and lis- 
tens to the cry of distress from the burthened 
and sorrowful spirit, at what time the storm 
falls upon it, — He vouchsafed to impart those 
consolations which flow immediately from him- 
self, and to prepare for her those secondary 
ones which the tenderness of friendship is so 
peculiarly adapted to supply. 

Mrs. Mortimer was surrounded by those who 
loved and reverenced her ; and, on this occa- 
sion, she shared largely in their sympathy. A 
gracious Providence had made ample provision 
for the respectability and comfort of her de- 
clining years ; and she continued still to oc- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 227 

cupy a wide sphere of influence and usefulness, 
with as much activity as advancing years 
would admit, with comfort to herself, and gene- 
ral interest to the circle of her friends. Nor 
did that God whom she had chosen as her por- 
tion in the morning of her days, now leave her 
without soothing tokens of his presence, while 
the shadows of the evening were descending 
on her solitary path. 

Among her letters of condolence, on this 
affecting subject, is found the following, from 
her excellent and valued friend, John Pearson, 
Esq:— 

"London, April 14*A, 1819. 
" Mr Dear Madam, — I will not seem to 
offer an apology for this delay, by telling you 
how much and how often I have thought of 
you since your late domestic affliction was 
known to me ; nor will I enlarge on the rava- 
ges death has made in the small circle of my 
own friends, within the last four or five weeks. 
Those who live long must expect such bereave- 
ments, and not be surprised at finding them- 
selves almost solitary, in a world of strangers. 
You were not unprepared for the mournful 
event with which it has pleased God to visit 
you ; and you have a sure and all-sufficient 
refuge in the favour and presence of Him who 
can calm the emotions of grief, and wipe away 
all tears from the eyes. The condolence and 
sympathy of a fellow pilgrim may be grateful, 
as expressing love to yourself, and exemplifying 



228 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

a Christian duty ; but the faith of a Christian 
ascends to higher sources of consolation, and, 
in meek submission to the Divine will, finds 
composure and peace amidst sickness and sor- 
row, privations, and the inroads of death ; — in- 
estimable privileges, conferred by our gracious 
Redeemer, who, by his death and passion, has 
taken away the sting of the last enemy, and 
made the grave one of the gates of heaven, 
and an entrance into supreme glory and bless- 
edness. May it please our heavenly Father 
to cause the riches of his grace to descend and 
abide upon you, and ' fill you with all joy and 
peace in believing, and make you to abound in 
hope, by the power of the Holy Ghost.' You 
have heard^ I presume, of the departure of our 
dear and valuable friend Mr. Hey.* The mes- 
senger of death smote him in the exercise of 
his professional duty at Otley. He was almost 
conscious of it at the time, and survived 
the stroke about ten days. His disorder was 
attended with great languor and feebleness, 
and occasional delirium ; so that he was little 
capable of conversing with his family and 
friends. But what he did say, implied entire 
resignation to the will of God, a firm trust and 
confidence in the merits and intercession of 
his Saviour, and love and thankfulness to all 
around him. ' Blessed are the dead that die 
in the Lord!' What a numerous society of 
friends have we in the regions of eternal life, 

* The venerable William Hey, Esq., of Leeds, an 
eminent surgeon, and a devoted servant of Christ. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 229 

and light, and joy ! If a mere philosopher 
could console himself under the prospect of dis- 
solution, by considering the happiness that 
might be enjoyed from admission into the com- 
pany of Socrates and Plato, of Scipio and 
Tully, and others ; with what superior advan- 
tage does the Christian anticipate the period 
when he shall arrive at the assembly of the 
Church of the first-born, and be introduced to 
the spirits of just men made perfect, and to an 
innumerable company of angels, and, above all, 
be for ever united to Jesus the Mediator, to 
dwell in his presence without fear of change, 
or intermission of blessedness, drinking of that 
pure 6 river whose streams make glad the city 
of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the 
Most High I ' 

" Permit me sometimes to be remembered in 
your prayers ; and believe me to be, with great 
respect and regard, my dear madam, your af- 
fectionate friend, and obedient servant, 

"John Pearson." 

The following, on the same occasion, is from 
Mrs. Bates : — 

" Gracehill, May 19th, 1819. 
" My Dear Friend, — I have just read, with 
mingled emotions, your account of the depart- 
ure of your estimable husband. It recalls him 
most forcibly to my thoughts ; and I could not 
forbear sitting down to tell you, and your fam- 
ily, that I remember the simplicity and energy 
of his prayers, and the strength of mind and 



230 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

principle, blended with kindness, which marked 
his conversation. I am glad that I knew and 
loved him. We are, both you and I, getting 
near the close of our present state. You, my 
very dear friend, have to say, * Goodness and 
mercy have followed me all my days !' and I 
may also say, ' So it has been with me.' Per- 
haps, for the sake of others, I have been more 
borne with than would have been proper on 
my own account. Those who are called, as 
you are, to minister in spirituals, require special 
purification, if they are to be made vessels 
bearing their Lord's name. Those whose mi- 
nistrations are in temporal things may be em- 
ployed, though their garments are not quite so 
unspotted. This, however, marks the inferior- 
ity of their service. But I, with you, hope to 
see and rejoice in the glory of our Lord ; and 
we shall then be reunited with all those who 
love him. This is a passage world ; and our 
business in it has more reference to that which 
is to come than we are aware of. 

" Your Lord will, I know, be to you a Com- 
forter, Guide, and Head. I doubt not your 
latter day will exceed in light and love, like 
dear Mrs. Fletcher's. I always felt compla- 
cency in your marriage ; a complacency which 
partook of a persuasion of its union with the 
Divine will. Therefore, I was sure you would 
be made a blessing where you went to sojourn ; 
for His will is the life of our path. So far your 
work is done, and you have a Sabbath before you 
enter into rest, Your separation is a short one* 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 231 

" Remember me in some future season, when 
you can ask that I may not come short of our 
Lord's best will concerning me. I remain with 
sincere affection, your grateful friend, 

" Elizabeth Bates." 

The sentiments of regard to Mr. Mortimer, 
here expressed, will be confirmed by the fol- 
lowing passage from a letter to himself: — 

" Blackheath, August l§th. 
" Our sun is setting ; yet if Divine Mercy 
renders it a summer's evening, we may admire 
its softened rays, and use its light, (which is 
the matter of most importance,) to prepare for 
removal from the present state. We now stand 
near an invisible world. I rejoice in the friend- 
ship I have enjoyed with you ; for I reckon that we 
shall return our thanks in a very pleasing man- 
ner to our benefactors, in an improved state ; 
and as a heathen said, * The benefactor never 
loses his rights,' we may have the pleasure of 
acknowledging them during the day of eternity. 
I have often thought, that Divine Wisdom knits 
his creatures together by benefits, to make 
strong the union of the universe. I am glad 
I paid you a visit when I could." 

From her friend, Mrs. D. Whitmore, Mrs. 
Mortimer likewise received expressions of kind 
and Christian sympathy. 

" Catsbrook, April 19th, 1819 
" My Dear Madam, — Ever since I heard 
of the bereavement it has pleased God that you 



232 MEMOIR OF MJtS. MORTIMER. 

should sustain, it has been in my heart to write 
to you ; to assure you of the lively and tender 
interest I take in all that befalls you ; and 
to recall myself to your remembrance, that 
I may not lose a place in your prayers, as I 
never fail to render you this only service in 
my power, — that of remembering you at a 
throne of grace. As the apostle exhorted 
his converts, and those of all ages in Christ, 
to pray for him, we have here a rule, that what- 
ever our own standing in the Church may be, 
as to those for whom we pray, still it is a 
labour of love which even the weakest may 
bestow on the strongest. I should not by 
choice have written to you immediately on the 
event ; as I by no means felt authorized to in- 
trude prematurely on a season which I know 
must have been so solemn and so awful to you, 
or to add to that hurry and distraction which 
the business consequent upon it must have oc- 
casioned. I have made inquiries after you, 
and find that there is much reason to praise 
God on your behalf. 

" I have lately seen a value in the truth, in 
the simple truth respecting every thing, far be- 
yond what I ever before did ; and I see with 
the utmost certainty that that truth must be 
sought for in God's word alone. From what- 
ever other source we may collect the rays of 
this blessed light, we must bring them all here, 
to. be verified and proved. For there is indeed 
much false light, and that often mingled with 
the true. How encouraging is the promise to 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 233 

the single eye ! I sometimes feel as if all my 
desire was centred in the possession of it, and 
of that purity of heart to which it is promised 
to i see God.' May I ask your prayers in my 
behalf for this blessing ? Some Christians can 
write and speak as those who, in full reliance 
upon the promises, are lying as it were in ease 
and rest, beside the still waters of comfort. 
But this is not my state. I seem to see the 
increasing value of faith, humility, and love, 
and to be actuated, at times, by the greatest 
ardour to possess them ; while at others I am 
much harassed by temptation. You, who have 
long been a guide and confidant to the children 
of God, will not, I am sure, be surprised at the 
selfishness incident to a state which has thus 
insensibly led me to be occupied more about 
myself than about you ; and I do indeed feel a 
pleasure in laying open my heart to you, which 
I experience but rarely in my Christian inter- 
course. Perhaps the Lord may grant me this 
blessing in its greater measure of personal con- 
versation. I do hope that you will now visit 
Shropshire again ; and come in the fulness of 
the blessing of the Gospel of peace, to stir us 
all up to seek that God and Saviour who has 
never bid any one seek his face in vain ; to 
encourage us by your matured experience ; 
and to point out that hand which has led and 
blessed you 

' Through all the changing scenes of life, 
In trouble and in joy.* 



234 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

We shall not probably otherwise meet this year, 
as many reasons are against my going to town. 
My nephew,* has just been with us. I know 
you will be glad to hear that I have had much 
satisfaction from this visit. I do believe he is 
not only resting on the true foundation, but 
building upon it all the works of the Spirit. 
He is somewhat singular. His principal study 
is the Bible ; of which he has great knowledge, 
and makes it, I believe, his rule in every thing. 
But, mixing little with the religious world, and 
being of an independent mind, he has nothing 
of its phraseology. In his life and conversation 
he exhibits the power of godliness, with little 
of the form ; perhaps less than is desirable for 
the edification of others, and to prevent the 
being misunderstood. Will you accept the as- 
surance of my sincerest respect and affection ? 
I am, my dear madam, your most attached, 
" D. Whitmore." 

At an early period of her widowhood, Mrs. 
Mortimer experienced a domestic calamity 
which considerably affected her spirits. It 
was the death of her nephew, Mr. Joseph 
Ritchie ; a young man of considerable talent 
and enterprise, who, for scientific purposes, 
had, as the agent of the British government, 
undertaken to explore the regions of the Niger, 
and some other parts of Central Africa. With 

'* This gentleman has since attained to great profes- 
sional eminence, and now fills one of the highest legal 
offices in this country. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 235 

this facinating object, he left his friends and 
native country, 

M For barbarous climes, and still more barbaious men." 

He prosecuted his projected route as far as 
Mourzouk, the capital of Fezzan ; where the 
dangers of his perilous adventure began to 
open fully upon him. He was seized with 
fever ; and, through the cold neglect and 
treachery of the barbarians, fell a prey to fam- 
ine and disease. This melancholy tale, which 
was unfolded to her by degrees, was very bitter 
to her tender heart. It was too painful to be 
made the subject of discourse ; yet her refuge 
was in God, and in his will she felt it both her 
duty and her privilege to acquiesce. The fol- 
lowing beautiful and touching lines will diver- 
sify the present subject, and show that her re- 
gretted relative was fashioned in no vulgar or 
unworthy mould. 

LINES 

WRITTEN BY MR. J. RITCHIE, 

Between Dover and Calais, 1818, when leaving his 
native land, to explore the interior of Africa. 

Thy chalky cliffs are fading from my view ; , 

Our bark is dancing gaily o'er the sea; 

I sigh, while yet I may, and say, Adieu, 
Albion, thou jewel of the earth ! to thee 

Whose fields first fed my childish fantasy, 

Whose mountains were my boyhood's wild delight, 

Whose rocks, and woods, and torrents, were to me 
The food of my soul's youthful appetite, 
Were music to my ear, a blessing to my sight. 



236 MEMOIR OF MRS* MORTIMER. 

1 never dream'd of beauty, but, behold, 

Straightway thy daughters flash'd upon my eye; 

I never mused on valour, but the old 
Memorials of thy haoghty chivalry 

Fill'd ray expanding heart with ecstasy; 

And when I thought on wisdom, and the crown 

The muses give, with exultation high 

I turifd to those whom thou hast call'd thine own, 
Who fill the spacious earth with their and thy renown. 

When my young heart, in life's gay morning hour, 
At beauty's summons beat a wild alarm, 

Her voice came to me from an English bower, 

And English smiles they were which wrought the 
charm : 

And if, when lull'd to sleep on fancy's arm, 
Visions of bliss my riper days have cheer'd, 

Of home, and love's fire-side, and greetings warm 
For one by absence and long toil endear'd, 
The fabric of my hope on thee hath still been rear'd. 

Peace to thy smiling hearths, when I am gone ! 

And mayst thou long thy ancient dowry keep, 
To be a mark to guide the nations on, 

Like a tall watch-tower, flashing o'er the deep I 
Still may'st thou bid the sorrower cease to weep, 

And throw the beams of truth athwart the night 
That wiaps the slumbering world, till, from their sleep 

Starting, remotest nations see the light, 

And earth be bless'd beneath the buckler of thy might 1 

Strong in thy strength I go ; and wheresoe'er 
My steps may wander, may I ne'er forget 

AH that I owe to thee; and O may ne'er 
My frailties tempt me to abjure that debt ! 

And what if far from thee my star must set, 

Hast thou not. hearts that will with sadness hear 

The tale ? and some fair cheek that shall be wet ? 
And some bright eyes in which the swelling tear 
Will start for him who sleeps on Afric's deserts drear? 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 237 

Yet will I not profane a charge like mine 

With melancholy bodings, nor believe 
That a voice whispering ever, in the shrine 

Of my own heart, spake only to deceive. 
I trust its promise, that I go to weave 

A wreath of palms, entwined with many a sweet 
Perenniil flower, which time shall ne'er bereave 

Of all its fragrance ; that I yet shall greet 

Once more the ocean's queen, and cast it at her feet,* 

But these trials, and some others, with which, 
about this period, she was exercised, like the 
clouds that form the back ground of a rich eve- 
ning sky, — which serve but to throw out, with 
increasing lustre, the glorious rays of the set- 
ting sun, — only exhibited the graces that adorn- 
ed her spirit, in mere full relief. Tranquillity 
of mind, resulting from a faith which refers all 
things to God in their origin, and to eternity 
in their issue, was the prevailing temperament 
in which Mrs. Mortimer passed through the 
successive shadows that threw their darkening 
outline on the closing day of life. Under the 
pressure of advancing years, and when by bodily 
infirmity precluded from more active scenes of 
service, she exercised unwonted influence in 
the social and domestic sphere. Her piety, 
her wisdom, her discretion, were appreciated 
and honoured by her friends ; who sought her 
counsel in emergencies, and had recourse to 

* In the forty-fifth number of the Quarterly Review, 
and in the Missionary Register for May, 1820, wil! be 
found the interesting particulars of this inauspicious 
enterprise. But from private sources Mrs. Mortimer 
received the most affecting account of this melancholy 
event. 



238 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

her for spiritual advice and consolation under 
circumstances of temptation and perplexity. 
In her sympathy and prayers affliction found a 
solace ; and the resources of her mind, enlight- 
ened and established as it was in Christian 
truth and holiness, afforded to her friends such 
wise and suitable instructions, as led them often 
to detect the sophistries of error, and to discern 
the path of duty and of privilege. To the es- 
timation in which she was held, and the confi- 
dence reposed in her religious knowledge and 
judgment, her correspondence bears pleasing 
testimony, and marks the weight of character 
she sustained. The following extracts from a 
letter, addressed to her by a most valuable and 
excellent clergyman, will show the light in 
which she was regarded by persons capable of 
appreciating her deep acquaintance with those 
truths which form in an especial manner that 
" secret of the Lord" which he reveals to none 
but holy and initiated minds. Their intrinsic 
value, as exhibiting the exemplary zeal, humi- 
lity, and single-mindedness of the writer, is an 
additional motive for their introduction here. 

"September, 1822. 
" My Dear Madam, — I trust, in troubling 
you with a letter, I am seeking good, some spi- 
ritual good for myself. But why should I trou- 
ble you ? Because I think and trust that you 
will write me something that, with the Divine 
blessing, will be profitable to my soul. You 
have conversed with some of the excellent of 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 239 

the earth ; you can, perhaps, let me a little into 
their secrets. How did they walk so closely 
with God ? How did they enjoy such constant 
communion with him ? How did they get that 
odour of sanctity, (to use a rather peculiar but 
expressive phrase,) which they diffused around 
them, and so promoted widely the cause and 
glory of their Saviour ? I trust, through the 
grace of God, I do feel a little of his presence ; 
but it is a very little. I am conscious of amaz- 
ing levity, vanity, and so much of self, that I 
hardly know, or think, that I ever do or say 
any thing to the glory of God only. I want 
these to be thrust out. I know prayer can ob- 
tain every thing. God does hear and answer 
me. Through Christ, my intercessor, I may 
have all and every thing of the kind I seek for ; 
provided prayer be the prayer of faith. But, 
what else was there to which their advance- 
ment in godliness seemed owing? 

" I think I feel something of a thirsting after 
Gor 1 . I do wish to enjoy as much of him as 
can be enjoyed on earth ; at least, I sometimes 
do, at my better seasons. But I am persuaded 
the whole heart must be his. We must not 
not walk before him, as some of the kings of 
Israel did, < not with a perfect heart.' 

" As far as I can judge, timidity and fearful - 
ness are no small snares to me. I do not find 
it difficult, generally, to be faithful in the pul- 
pit ; I feel little fear there. But I have in my 
parish several ungodly, profligate, despisers and 
haters of the truth, that will not hear; and to 



240 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

get at them, is indeed a burthen to me. Is not 
a minister of the Gospel somewhat differently 
placed, as to such persons, from what the early 
preachers of it were ? Their flocks were pro- 
fessing Christians, hearers and professors too; 
many of mine, and of all parish ministers now, 
are not professing Christians, in the proper 
sense of that word: they do not profess, but 
bear, the Christian name. Mr. Fletcher, in 
his « Portrait of St. Paul,' does not notice this; 
which seems to me the main difficulty in strictly 
applying St. Paul's example and declarations 
respecting himself, and his exhortations to 
Timothy, to a parish minister now. All Timo- 
thy's flock were professors, and avowedly under 
his care : I mean avowedly on their part. So 
it was with those whom St. Paul warned from 
house to house. It is not so with ours ; they 
do not avow themselves under our care ; it is 
almost, if not quite, the same as if Timothy had 
called on all the heathens within his district, 
and warned them. Now, pray, favour me with 
your thoughts on these points. I want to keep 
a conscience void of offence ; yet I do not feel 
clear but that Satan may be taking an advan- 
tage here, to rob me of comfort and peace." 

Mrs. Mortimer had recently undergone ano- 
ther domestic privation, in the removal of her 
second daughter, Miss E. Mortimer, by mar- 
riage, from the parental roof. On occasion of 
the loss of her interesting and affectionate so- 
ciety, she received (he following kind and 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 241 

soothing letter from her friend, Mrs. D. Whit- 
raore : — 

"Catsbrook, May VSth, 1823. 
" My Dearest Madam, — There are few, if 
any, now left upon earth, with whom I find 
that kind of union, formed from esteem, love, 
and confidence, and that indescribable some- 
thing, which removes all restraint, and renders 
intercourse so peculiarly pleasant and interest- 
ing, as with yourself. Amidst the continual 
and various changes of this fluctuating world, 
what a blessing it is to the Christian to have 
the anchor of the soul, sure and steadfast, fixed 
in Him who is t the same yesterday, to-day, and 
for ever!' Nor is he without minor props, 
which are in a degree exempt from the conti- 
nued alterations around him ; exempt, at least, 
as far as the spirit is concerned, though the 
stamp of vanity is affixed to all the material 
part. One of these is surely Christian friend- 
ship : — 

* Our bodies may far off remove, 
We still are one in heart.' 

We may be scattered over the wide world ; we 
may even be taken into another; but, still the 
link remains unbroken : — 

' For all the subjscts of our King 1 
In earth and heaven are one/ 

It is, I think, almost three years since I enjoy- 

ed the pleasure of your society ; and many a 

change has taken place in regard to myself, 

16 



242 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

since that time; particularly as it concerns my 
friends. The wind seems to have blown, and 
scattered them hither and thither; and I look 
around, and could almost ask, with the Persian 
poet, ' Where are they V Yet I will not cherish 
the worldly feeling, that they are lost to me. 
No ! we are only separated during our working 
day, to meet, at the hour of rest, in our Father's 
house. 

"Perhaps we may never be intended to meet 
again in this world: yet the hours we have en- 
joyed together are not lost. Independently of 
adding to the catalogue of those mercies with 
which our gracious Father has blessed former 
days, they have been, I trust, the seeds of fu- 
ture good, — of future praise and blessedness. 
Surely we may humbly hope that the promise, 
Malachi iii, 16, 17, rested upon our acquaint- 
ance. With few, very few, have I ever enjoyed 
such Christian intercourse as with yourself; 
and I own I expect not to enjoy it again. 

"But I have not yet entered on the chief 
subject that induced me to take up my pen at 
this time; and that is, the recent loss you have 
sustained of the society of your daughter. It 
is, indeed, all in the natural and authorized 
order of things ; but still I am convinced that 
you must feel it as another stripping of the 
creature. May you have the best recom- 
pense for your loss, in being assured of her 
welfare, and that more than supply for every 
earthly bereavement, — closer communion with 
your Saviour! I dare say, you will recol- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 243 

lect Baxter's remark, that he believes every 
Christian, in some part or other of his course, 
is called to partake of his Lord's experience, 
and to be left alone. Perhaps it may be so 
with some, more entirely than with others; be- 
cause some require a greater weaning; and 
some are strong enough to bear it. Some will 
not be wholly brought to the Lord but by deep 
chastening; while of others, from possessing 
Abraham's faith, the Lord may see fit to demand 
the willing offering of their Isaacs. 

" I dare not write in the usual style of con- 
gratulatory letters. I know not enough of the 
circumstances of the case to authorize me to 
form a guess of the probable chance of happi- 
ness. But this I can say, that I am interested 
in the welfare of my young friend ; and trust I 
shall ever continue to remember her at a throne 
of grace. Called out on a busy scene, past re- 
collections of me must fade from her memory. 
Becoming more and more recluse, on the con- 
trary, they attain a stronger hold on me. It is 
with the feelings, as with the memory, in old 
age ; they are more operative upon former than 
upon present things. 

" I will bid you farewell, my ever dear and 
honoured friend, with two stanzas, that appear- 
ed, I believe, in America: — 

4 There is an hour of peaceful rest, 
To mourning wanderers given ; 
There is a calm for souls distrcss'd, 
A balm for every wounded breast; 
'Tis found above— in heaven. 



244 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

There fragrant flowers immortal bloom, 

And joys supreme are given ; 
There rays Divine disperse the gloom ; 
Beyond the confines of the tomb 

Appears the dawn of heaven.' 

"Your ever grateful and attached friend, 
"D. Whitmore." 

Mrs. Mortimer's health in 1824 was so far 
restored, that in the spring she paid a visit to 
her friends at Clifton, and spent part of the 
summer at Raithby. A few extracts from her 
correspondence will give the best idea of her 
circumstances at this time. To Mrs. Holland 
she writes as follows: — 

" Clifton-Hill, March 2nd, 1824. 

"My Dear Mary, — The accounts I have 
received from Eliza, respecting the Lord's 
goodness to you, have drawn out my heart in 
gratitude to Him who has dealt so graciously 
with you. I hope you continue to go on well,* 
and that you will take care not to exert your- 
self too much: many by doing so have suffered 
for a long time. 

"On the 16th ult. I left home; and, after a 
pleasant and profitable journey, reached my 
kind friends here on the 19th. They live in a 
way that suits me; seldom visiting, — and the 
friends that call on them are, in general, very* 
intelligent and religious people. I see them or 
not, just as I please; and we spend our time 
together, or independently of each other. 

"Yesterday, I went to Pensford with Miss 
E. F., and spent a few hours in the place 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 245 

where Mrs. P. laboured so constantly during 
the last years of her life. She has funded pro- 
perty for a school for girls. Mr. O. and Miss 
F.s continue to make up deficiencies, and a 
way is kept open for clothing and educating 
eighty girls. It was a solemn time to me, as 
Mrs. P. and many of my glorified friends seem- 
ed almost present with me. Miss F.s talk of 
a drive to Barley Wood ; and as I am to be of 
the party, I wish I could transfer my place to 
you or dear Eliza. 

" Several of my friends have been suddenly 
called home : this speaks loudly to me. They 
have gained the port, and I am waiting for 
fresh breezes to waft me into the blessed har- 
bour. At present my health is tolerable ; but 
Mr. Pearson says, I must still continue 'a fine 
lady.'* This calls for self-denial; as I am 

* " In November, 1822," says Mrs. Reynolds, " Mrs. 
Mortimer, having been for some time in a more delicate 
state of health than usual, was prevailed on to consult 
her friend Mr. Pearson ; whose advice had been bene- 
ficial on former occasions. After hearing a statement 
of her general debility, Mr. Pearson advised entire quiet. 
* Indeed,' he said, ' in order to make myself understood, 
I would recommend that, instead of your taking the lead 
in company as formerly, you should be content to let 
others do so ; instead of praying yourself, let others 
pray ; and, instead of assisting yourself to any thing 
you may wish for, you must in all respects, for the pre- 
sent, on Christian principles, assume the fine lady, and 
ring for your servant to wait upon you,' 

M This, as may be supposed, was no small trial, to one 
of her active disposition. For a time, she could scarce- 
ly be reconciled to live, as she termed it 'uselessly;' 
but on a Christian friend's reminding her of the irn* 



246 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

sometimes disposed to try how far I can go : 
indeed, it is little that I can do, and that little 
produces fatigue. 

"I must say, I feel increasing love to you, 
and regard for your welfare. Our local situa- 
tion stimulates me to look forward to that day, 
when all the redeemed shall meet before the 
throne. I feel my own business is to prepare ; 
but I am ashamed of the manner in which I 
perform it. Yet my Lord bears with me, and 
sweetly encourages me to come forward. Our 
adorable Redeemer has opened a way of con- 
stant access for us, into a fulness of Gospel 
blessings: let us avail ourselves of it, by com- 
ing in faith and prayer for a fuller baptism of 
the Holy Spirit. 

"I often think, if my dear M. and her family 
were nearer to me, what an additional comfort 
it would be to the many I am now favoured with. 
But, blessed be God ! we can meet in spirit ; 
and should my health continue, 1 hope that a 
greater indulgence will be allowed us both at 
Raithby and at River-Terrace. I remain, my 
beloved Mary, your most affectionate 

"E. Mortimer." 
The pleasing anticipation just expressed was 
happily realized ; and on the 23rd of August, 
portance of submission to the Divine will, and the ex- 
hibition of the passive graces, she said, ' It is the Lord, 
let him do as seemeth him good.' The advice was ri- 
gidly attended to ; and had so happy an effect, that, 
after a time, she was enabled safely to resume, though 
but in a limited measure, those Christian exercises fop 
which she was peculiarly qualified," 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 247 

1824, Mrs. Mortimer thus writes from Raithby 
to her friend Mrs. J. : — 

"Mr Dear Friend, — What says my good 
friend Mr. J. to leaving his cares and toils, 
and going for a fortnight or more with his 
daughters to breathe the country air, to see 
the beauties of nature, and, by beholding the 
rich plenty and beauty wherewith the earth 
is crowned, to be taught how to rise from earth 
to heaven 1 But if Mr. J. prefers sea breezes, 
floating vessels, and plunges in the briny ocean, 
I dare answer for my young friends being wil- 
ling to accompany him. Tell him, I only re- 
commend what I have been practising. Sea 
air, (which I now enjoy at Scagness,) country 
scenes, &c, have been of use to me. My 
health is better than when I left home ; and if 
our Lord blesses a journey to him, as he has 
done to me, it will be worth his while to leave 
his engagements for a few weeks, to secure so 
desirable an. object. 

" You and I, my dear friend, have often seen 
immortal spirits vainly striving to quench their 
thirst for happiness at the streams of creature- 
comfort. Disappointment has been the result. 
How merciful in Him who has opened the way 
for our resting in himself alone ! Tell your 
daughter B., if she has Herbert's Poems, to 
look for one called < The Pulley,' and read it to 
you and her sisters. This fully illustrates my 
meaning ; and you may explain to them how 
many more storms some pass through than 
others, before they attain to true rest, because 



248 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

they seek it where it is not to be found. But 
when it is found ; when the soul that is seek- 
ing rest finds it in the Saviour ; when the 
guilty conscience finds pardon, and the fallen 
spirit a Restorer, so as to be enabled to look 
up to God as in Jesus reconciled ; then created 
things may be enjoyed, as streams flowing from 
the fountain ; and, by being received as such, 
held in the Divine will, and, rendered back in 
the spirit of praise, all is enjoyed in God, and 
God in all. May you and I feel more of this 
spirit, and may our dear children know more 
of the things that are freely offered to them by 
infinite love [ Yours, &c, 

"K Mortimer." 

The benefit derived from these excursions 
was so considerable, that Mrs. Mortimer passed 
the winter in tolerable health and comfort ; she 
was in general enabled to attend the means of 
grace ; to fulfil her religious and benevolent 
engagements ; and occasionally to enjoy the 
company of old and valued friends. Indeed* 
she felt herself so well that, in February, 1825, 
she ventured to repeat her visit to her kind 
friends at Clifton ; where concurring circum- 
stances, congenial to her taste and habits, 
made her feel peculiarly at home. To a dear 
friend, suffering under deeply affecting bereave- 
ment, she thus writes : — 

" Clifton, February I2th r 1825. 
" When I read your most interest ng letter, 
my mind felt deeply for you ; and all I could 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIS KXt. 219, 

do, was to commend you to Him who has 
enabled your dear mother to overcome through 
the blood of the Lamb, and left you '• a stranger 
in a strange land.' Most tenderly do I feel 
for you and your dear sisters. The loss of 
such a parent as yours is a general loss ; and 
under any circumstances must be keenly felt. 
But to you, my dear friend, the stroke is all 
point. It will open recollections which I pray 
the Father of spirits to enable you to restrain ; 
and to give you such views of the glory into 
which our emancipated friends are admitted, 
as shall in some measure counteract what 
your affectionate heart would otherwise feel. 
As soon as I received your letter, my heart 
congratulated the patient sufferer ; and prais- 
ed our gracious Lord, who had permitted 
her to exchange the cross for the triumphant 
crown. And then I turned to you ; and 
while pouring out my heart for mercies, — 
such as present support, and future blessing 
and direction, — those words of the psalmist 
seemed to be spoken in my mind, ' I will guide 
the meek in judgment.' I believe he will ; and 
my prayer ever since has been, ' Lord, help 
my dear friend to believe this for herself; that 
she may not sink as heretofore, under this 
painful bereavement.' — Remember, He who is 
our God in covenant, is the faithful, promise- 
keeping Jehovah. My sympathizing love at- 
tends yourself and sisters. Wishing you all, 
in this world, a fulness of Gospel blessings, and 
hereafter an abundant entrance into that glory 



250 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

which shall be revealed, I remain, my dear 
friend, your truly affectionate 

" E. Mortimer." 

The Christian sympathy, evinced in this 
letter, formed a part only of a series of sooth- 
ing and affectionate expressions of interest in 
the sorrows of a suffering friend. That sym- 
pathy was a cordial poured upon the wounded 
spirit, whose anguish called it forth. It was 
a gracious alleviation, prepared by the tender- 
ness of Divine pity ; and infused both strength 
and consolation in a mingled stream. It was 
an emanation from the God of love ; — a reflec- 
tion of the image of Him who is " touched with 
the feeling of our infirmities." 

Mrs. Mortimer, on leaving Clifton, visited 
her son, Mr. George Mortimer, at Yardley ; but 
her excursions during this season were not at- 
tended with those beneficial effects which, on 
former occasions, had been happily the case. On 
her return home she received injury from a fall; 
the consequences of which she painfully felt 
for a considerable time ; and, indeed, from this 
period she became the subject of increasing 
debility ; being unable to endure fatigue, or 
make any effort, without great exhaustion and 
inconvenience to herself. 

The following letter from Mrs. D. Whit- 
more will evince that lady's kind interest in 
every thing that concerned her friend : — j 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 251 

" Catsbrook, May 3rd, 1825. 

" My Dearest Madam, — It was no little com- 
fort to us to hear from yourself of your safe 
arrival in London. Still I should be glad to 
be assured that no after inconvenience ensued 
from your fall, and the consequent exertion of 
travelling. We all missed you very much ; 
but we had this solace in our deprivation, that 
our feelings were alike ; and they, I think, are 
little susceptible of the finer feelings of our 
nature, who do not know the charm of sympa- 
thy, even in those things that pain and grieve 
us. In heaven we shall all think and feel, as 
well as speak, the same thing. And is it not 
in this union that the oneness spoken of in the 
Scriptures, must consist 1 

" It is our wants, our sins, and sorrows, which 
drive us to our Divine Friend ; and what we 
all need, as Mrs. Fletcher said, is, to make 
more use of Christ ; to go to him continually, 
and for every thing. And yet even many of 
us who are convinced of this truth, for want 
of right views of ourselves, lean upon every 
other broken prop ; — lean upon man's agency, 
—a nothing without the Lord acts by him. 
Others, in a philosophical hardihood very dan- 
gerous to spirituality, leave all to a vague hope 
that things will be better by and by, that ca- 
lamities will be averted, and that prosperity 
will ensue. 

" I feel persuaded that I have your prayers : 
will you remember me, as regards my present 
situation ; especially the vacuum my weak 



252 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

sight necessarily occasions ? I cannot now, 
as heretofore, get out of self by better society 
in books. I must go to higher converse still ; 
and this is a lesson, I fear, I have very imper- 
fectly learned. I still have many a sigh after 
those friends that have so often cheered my 
solitary hours, and lessened grief, and lulled 
pain, throughout my pilgrimage. 

"I am aware that one of the dangers attend- 
ing the diminished power of usefulness is a 
decay of the desire. I think, therefore, that, 
in such a state, we ought to be particularly 
watchful for, and careful in using, every oppor- 
tunity the Lord affords us ; and, after all, his 
openings are the only real ones to usefulness. 
Were you here, how much I should like to say 
to you, and hear your remarks. As I become 
a less busy actor on the stage, the drama of 
life seems to furnish me with a greater fund of 
observation and reflection ; yet, what danger 
is there of forming false conclusions from mis- 
taken and imperfect premises ! I often think 
of St. Paul's injunction, 'Judge nothing before 
the time ;' when, the secrets of all hearts being 
laid open, we shall not only know our common 
nature and the real state of our friends, but 
our own characters, — 'yea, I judge not my 
own self/ — or, as you comprehensively sum it 
up, * every Divine secret shall be laid open.' 
Ever yours, D. Whitmore." 

Increasing infirmity from this time preclu- 
ded travelling, and Mrs. Mortimer did not again 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 253 

leave home to undertake a long journey. Her 
annual visits to her daughter, Mrs. Reynolds, at 
Newington, were, however, still regularly con- 
tinued ; where she seemed to enjoy society, and 
generally returned with improved health and 
spirits. Bat feeling her strength inadequate 
to any farther effort, she thus writes in reply 
to Mrs. Holland, on the subject of a kind invi- 
tation to visit her at Raithby :■ — 

" Newington, June 2oth, 1825. 
" My Dear Mary, — Eliza will tell you every 
thing as to our families, friends, &c. Still I 
cannot let her leave home, without a line to 
thank you for your kind letter and warm invi- 
tation. The love I bear to you and yours would 
lead me willingly to accept the latter, and re- 
new the sweet opportunities which, in times 
past, we have enjoyed together, in your peace- 
ful retreat. But, though my heart kindles 
with gratitude to God and you at the recollec- 
tion of them, at present I can only give it vent 
by praying that the choicest blessings may de- 
scend on you all. May your dear little girl be 
to you what you have been to me ; and may 
my dear Mary and Mr. Holland, if spared to be- 
tween three and four score years of age, find 
in their children what I have found in some of 
mine ! Your love, and dear Eliza's, has been a 
cordial in my cup. I often thank my gracious 
God for the harmony which has subsisted 
among us, and the love we feel for each other. 
" If I were only spirit, I should often join your 



254 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER, 

little party ; but, as, it is, we will endeavour to 
meet at the Saviour's feet. We can join hearts, 
if not voices, in supplicating for grace. May 
a plentiful effusion descend on you both ! 

" Yours, E. Mortimer." 

To the friend, whom she so kindly addressed 
on the subject of recent bereavement, Mrs. 
Mortimer again writes, in reference to a pro- 
posed visit to Manchester, which had been 
anticipated with much pleasure, both by herself 
and by her kind friends : — 

"River-Terrace, July, 1825. 
".Want of inclination will not prevent me, if 
I find my strength is equal to such an exertion. 
At present, home, and much quiet, suit me best. 
I can bear no fatigue, and am obliged to live 
what I should once have called a useless life ; 
but I am endeavouring to learn the lessons of 
resignation and self-abasement, which the Lord 
intends to teach me. On the past, I look back 
with humiliation, gratitude, and love. How 
tenderly and how bountifully has the Lord dealt; 
with me ! goodness and mercy have followed 
me all my days ; and, through my Redeemer's 
merit, I believe I shall dwell in his house for 
ever. You and I, my dear friend, have much 
to be thankful for : let us take the cup of sal- 
vation, and continue to call on the name of the 
Lord : he delights in our prosperity, and waits 
to fill our hearts with his love. Look at your 
mercies more than at your wants, and at Him 
with whom there is no variableness, neither 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 255 

shadow of turning, rather than at any of the 
changing scenes beneath the sun ; and he will 
fulfil the promises in your behalf, in which he 
has caused you to trust. I have felt much 
sweetness in those words, * Jesus Christ, the 
same yesterday, to-day, and for ever.' Meet 
me, my dear friend, in meditation on them, 
and let us pray for a fuller experience of what 
they encourage us to expect." 

"September 1st, 1825. 

" The extremely hot weather affected me 
much : I was very poorly, and felt thankful that 
I was not from home. The weakness I expe- 
rienced is inexpressible, and my appetite was 
quite gone. I thank God, I am now better, 
and take my food nearly as usual. 

" If T may judge from present feelings, my 
time for active service, in our Lord's vineyard, 
is nearly past ; as the languor I feel is exces- 
sive. But, blessed be my Lord ! he helps me 
to believe, to love, to abide in peaceful re- 
signation at his feet, and to rejoice in hope 
of that day, when, with all our elder brethren, 
as well as with my dear friends who are now 
fighting the fight of faith, I shall praise, adore, 
and love. One chief lesson, which our Lord 
has lately taught me, has been by casting light 
on those words, i We are saved by hope.' I 
have not sufficiently lived in the exercise of 
this blessed grace, respecting what revelation 
unfolds and faith apprehends. Help me by 
your prayers. I remain always, my dear friend, 
Yours most affectionately, E. Mortimer." 



256 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

In the summer of 1826, in addition to the 
increased debility consequent upon advancing 
age, Mrs. Mortimer was visited, for a season, 
with a distressing failure of sight, which it was 
feared would end in total blindness. This was 
a trial to her faith ; as it debarred her from 
those exercises in which she had been long 
accustomed to find profit and delight. But 
patience had its perfect work. Her spirit had 
been trained to habits of submission, and filial 
acquiescence in the will of God. She under- 
stood the purpose of her heavenly Father in the 
discipline which he inflicts upon his children ; 
and was content and thankful that her meetness 
for the stainless purity of his eternal presence 
should be furthered by the methods which his 
wisdom saw it most expedient to employ. Many 
hours were passed in silence and seclusion, un- 
relieved by those engagements which beguile 
and even lend a charm to solitude. But the 
soul could still exert its faculties; and these 
had long been conversant with objects discern- 
ed by other eyes than those of sense. The 
light of heaven, in its own hallowed brightness, 
shone upon her mind; revealing splendours 
such as never emanate from mere material suns. 
Free in thought, and fervent in affection, she 
held communion with the Father of her spirit ; 
passed, by " the new and living way," into the 
inmost sanctuary ; and there, amidst a world 
of pure intelligences, held converse more intense 
and intimate with things eternal and Divine, 
than when accessible to more distinct impres- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 257 

slons from the forms of sense. To those friends 
who were privileged with her society at this 
period, the mellowing richness of her Christian 
character was most apparent. When coming 
to them from the mount, she would endeavour 
to add wings to their devotion, and invite them 
to ascend with her to those more elevated re- 
gions, where, by transforming views of the Re- 
deemer, and nearer surveys of the bright 
inheritance beyond the flood, they might be 
stimulated to increased activity, and run their 
course in joyous expectation of their rich and 
permanent reward. But the fall extent of 
painful apprehension, on the subject of her 
blindness, through Divine mercy, was not real- 
ized. Although her power of vision still re- 
mained exceedingly imperfect ; yet, w 7 ith con- 
siderable help from glasses, she could read a 
portion of the Scriptures daily, and discern, 
though often not distinctly, the persons of her 
friends. Her correspondence was of necessity 
relinquished. In a few instances, however, Mrs. 
Reynolds kindly took up her mother's pen, as 
will appear from the subsequent acknowledg- 
ment of Mrs. Bates, who, like the friend she 
addresses, seems to be standing as a stranger 
on the verge of time : — 

"Bath, September 28th, 1826. 

"My Dear Friend, — I have just received 

a most pleasing letter from your dear daughter, 

Mrs. Reynolds ; for which I beg to thank both 

you and her. I have taken mv present lodging 

17 



258 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

for a year, though I consider it merely as a 
tent of waiting, and, would humbly pray, of 
preparation also, for a removal from this earth 
at no great distance of time. I look to you as 
one of the upper servants, who have had con- 
6dential business to transact relative to spiritual 
matters a My place, for which I have to return 
many thanks, was in the out-offices, some of 
which wanted repair, and others erection : of 
course, this work admits of a visible conclusion ; 
and I now retire, expecting not to see the pros- 
perity of any of the Churches, but their shaking, 
"This long and deeply-rooted view makes 
me feel detached from the present scene ; and 
glad to be permitted to look toward a city that 
cannot be moved. Here I have neither home 
nor family ; and the majority of the friends of 
my youth are in paradise. Yourself, my dear 
friend, are almost the only exception. What 
I am now concerned for, is, that my few re- 
maining steps may be under the hand of our 
Lord and Saviour; the order of whose will is 
life and light. You will perhaps ask, why I 
look for a shaking of Churches : I answer, be- 
cause I look for a shaking of kingdoms. 

"The restored Hebrew Church will become 
capable of receiving and retaining the new 
wine;* and, when clothed with the new gar- 
ments, will appear as becometh the priests and 
kings of the earth. 

• "But now, my dear friend, I must more im- 
mediately address you, and say that I rejoice 
* Luke v, 36. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 259 

in our Lord's dealings with you. He has long 
been your light, and is now gradually withdraw- 
ing you from all but himself. This constitutes 
the best and most favoured preparation for 
being called home to him. 

" To-day I was edified in reading the account 
of the feast of dedication, John x, 22, in which 
I find that the Jews illuminated their houses 
with lights placed before their doors. Hence 
I incline to think that we should begin the ac- 
count of our Lord's discourse in the eighth 
chapter of St. John, and continue it to the 39th 
verse of the tenth chapter, as being held in the 
temple, (partly in Solomon's porch, a beautiful 
part of the temple,) during the feast of the de- 
dication; and hereby our Lord's saying, that 
he was the light of the world, receives a fuller 
meaning from the surrounding scene; especial- 
ly considering that he was himself the true 
anti-type of the temple, whose dedication the 
people were then celebrating with lights placed 
before their doors. 

"A few days ago I heard of Mr. Pearson's 
death. Mrs. Reynolds says it was unexpected. 
I am never surprised at my friends dying. I 
rather am more surprised that people live, see- 
ing the means of death encompass us daily. 
Our days on earth have appeared to me in- 
creasingly important as thev shorten, How 
to fill them up, so as to get as near as we are 
capable of to God, is the great secret of duty 
and happiness. That inestimable means (' look- 
ing to Jesus') is still new and important, and 



280 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

contains in it innumerable counsels, comforts, 
and admonitions. Yours, E. M. Bates." 

The following short letter from Mrs. Morti- 
mer, to her daughter at Raithby, is probably the 
last she ever penned : — 

" October 21th, 1828. 
« My Dear Mary,— If all the letters my 
heart has dictated to you in the night season, 
during my late illness, had been written and 
sent by post, you would have been half ruined. 
They were ended in prayer, and my blessed 
Lord permitted their free access to the mercy 
seat. Accept my thanks for all your love and 
kindness. Your little cakes were very good, 
and the message in which they were inclosed 
made them doubly acceptable. We have been 
drinking of the same cup; but infinite wisdom 
and love mixed the ingredients. May you be 
fully restored, and both of us reap sanctified 
effects! As to myself, I am very weak and 
feeble; but the Lord is my strength and my 
salvation. The promises are precious; they 
open upon me. Yes, my Mary, I often antici- 
pate the blessed day, when, with all that are 
gone before, and with all that are following, 
we shall unite to praise God and the Lamb for 
ever. I love you here, and often praise God 
for the mutual blessings he has given us through 
each other; but, in the world to come, every 
grace shall be perfected, and we shall join to 
give glory to him through whom we met below. 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 261 

I wish you may be able to read what I have 
written. I remain, yours, &c, 

" E. Mortimer." 



CHAPTER VI. 

11 If my pilgrimage and warfare have such mercies, 
what shall I find in my home, and in my triumph? If 
I have found so much in this strange country, at such 
a distance from God, what shall I have in heaven, in 
his immediate presence?" — Baxter. 

How truly and how beautifully is it said of 
man, that " he cometh up like a flower, and is 
cut down;" thaf "he passeth away also as a 
shadow, and continueth not!" It is a pensive 
task to trace the progress of individual life. 
With what interest is marked, in the com- 
mencement, every almost latent germ of cha- 
racter ! Its developement by casual incident 
or careful cultivation is distinctly traced ; and 
shortly, in its perfect loveliness of form and 
colour, it expands mature beneath the curious 
and investigating eye. But while that eye is 
yet exercised in observation, the delicacy of its 
tints begins to fade, and the gracefulness of its 
form is in some slight measure impaired. The 
meridian sun exhausts the dew from its petals ; 
and the wind discomposes the beautiful order 
of their arrangement. It loses by degrees its 
attractions, and the breeze of the evening soon 
lays its honours in the dust. But there is also 



262 MEMOIR OF MRS, MORTIMER. 

a spirit in man ; and that inspiration of the 
Almighty, which superadded to his inferior ex- 
istence this immaterial and intelligent princi- 
ple, and which gives expansion to his faculties 
in the bloom of opening life, will never remit 
its operations, or leave the immortal nature to 
suffer the fearful, the fatal collapse of death. 
Revelation lets in the light of eternity upon the 
gloom of decay, and the darkness of the grave. 
It restores to the embraces of friendship and 
affection those that have been severed by the 
blast of the desert ; it soothes the regrets of 
the stranger, left to finish his journey in lone- 
liness ; and it solves the mysterious enigma of 
human life. Under the pressure of these emo- 
tions, which cannot but affect the thoughtful 
mind, while reviewing the brief period allotted 
to man's mortal existence, together with the 
various changes and chances to which that ex- 
istence is subjected, how consoling, animating, 
and delightful is the assurance, that though 
"a man die, yet he shall live again!" 

Under the sustaining influence of immortal 
hope, the last season of life may be contem- 
plated, not only without dismay, but with se- 
rene and holy joy. The traveller is within 
sight of his home; the pilgrim has nearly es- 
caped the perils of the wilderness ; the long 
absent son is on the eve of admittance to the 
paternal mansion ; the saint is on the verge of 
heaven, in the precincts of the vision of God. 
The hoary head is a crown of glory, when found 
in the way of righteousness ; and the haloes 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 203 

that encircle it are as wreaths of light, which 
shine to cheer and animate in their progress 
those who are as yet at a farther distance from 
the goal. But faith, which gives subsistence 
to things unseen, and is the evidence of antici- 
pated realities, is the only principle that can 
disperse the shadows, and dispel the gloom, 
which will otherwise collect and settle heavily 
around the chill and cheerless evening of de- 
parting life. 

Mrs. Mortimer was brought within the verge 
of fourscore years, when mortal sickness made 
its last and irresistible attack. Its precursors 
were excessive languor, and such infirmities as 
flesh is heir to, when standing on the borders 
of the grave^ 

On the morning of December 25th, 1834, a 
sudden seizure, in its nature not distinctly as. 
ceriained, made an impression on her mental 
faculties, as well as on her outward frame. She 
fell down in her chamber, and was for some 
time ineapable of speech. Yet from this attack 
she partially recovered, and in a few days was 
able to converse for a short time with her most 
intimate friends. The brain, however, was dis- 
turbed and weakened in its functions ; and re- 
turns of aberration not unfrequently occurred. 
There were yet lengthened intervals of conva- 
lescence; and on these occasions, as opportu- 
nity was given, she testified, that though the 
floods and storms were now descending, yet 
her faith was firm; it was established on the 
everlasting Rock. Meek submission to the 



264 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

will of her Redeemer ; patience, humble pray- 
er, and thankfulness for a long life of mercies ; 
with self-renunciation, and entire reliance on 
the meritorious death and intercession of her 
Saviour ; were the dispositions which she uni- 
formly manifested when adverting to her state 
and prospects, as she stood upon the borders 
of the unseen world. But there were seasons 
when overwhelming languor, for a while, was 
superseded by the efforts of the loftier principle 
within ; when faith and hope, with holy energy^ 
seemed to exalt her on expanded wings to hea- 
ven, and to give the foretaste of approaching 
bliss. Her richest views, as well as her sub- 
limest and most hallowed feelings, were elicited 
in conversation with the friends, who, in some 
favourable moments, were so happy as to catch 
the sparks of light and love that emanated from 
ner spirit ; cheering the gloom and solitude of 
sickness, and discovering death to be a sting, 
less though a direful foe. The lips of the wise 
diffuse knowledge ; and the testimony of saints 
to the love and faithfulness of the Redeemer 
affords instruction and encouragement to those 
who follow them in their triumphant course. 
On one occasion, after tenderly inquiring into 
the circumstances of a suffering friend, she 
lifted up her heart in silent prayer, and then 
desired that, with her kind and sympathizing 
love, the following information might be given : 
".Tell Mr. and Mrs. M.," said she, "that I am 
waiting in expectation of a great change. 
Changes, you know, are often causes of appre- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 265 

hension, because they may be for the worse. 
But that is not my case. I am anticipating my 
change with joy ; because I have a rational, 
Scriptural, well-grounded hope, that it will be 
for the better. It will be to a state where there 
is no suffering, no pain, no infirmity ; where I 
shall behold my Saviour, and be for ever filled 
with his love ' It will be all glory ! But I have 
no distinct conception of what it will be like. I 
can form no idea of that which is infinite. My 
mind is lost when I attempt to realize it. But 
my Saviour is my rock, and my refuge ; and I 
rejoice in the blessed hope of everlasting life 
with him." A beaming joy overspread her 
countenance while giving utterance to these 
expressions, which were pronounced at inter- 
vals with deep solemnity ; and seemed to issue 
from a sainted spirit on the confines of the 
world of light. 

At another time, she said, "I am very weak ' r 
I can do nothing : but the Lord is good. I love 
to call him my Saviour ! my Jesus !" She then 
repeated those lines : — 

" Thy succour afford, thy righteousness bring ;- 
Thy promises bind thee compassion to have, 
Now, now, let me find thee almighty to save." 

Her mind, through weakness, sometimes 
wandered ; and she imagined that she had been 
dreaming. " I often dream," she said, " and 
should be glad not to dream so much, because 
my dreams are not always pleasant. But the 
Lord controls all." 



266 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

On January 6 th, 1885, she was informed of 
the death of an aged friend ; and association 
led her back to early times and scenes ; but 
in regularly connecting her remembrances, 
she found considerable difficulty. Of this she 
was quite conscious, and observed, " My facul- 
ties fail. When I think of one subject, if an- 
other strikes my mind, I lose the first idea ; 
neither can I fully express what I mean to 
say." "Your faculties," said a friend, who 
wished to relieve her from something like em- 
barrassment, "will soon be renewed in im- 
mortal vigour. The subjects of your early re- 
collections are nearly all of them gone into 
eternity : both the persons and their concerns 
are passed away." With rekindling anima- 
tion, she replied, " Yes : the world passes away ; 
and every thing connected with it perishes ; 
but ' he that doeth the will of God abideth for 
ever.'" "It is," said her friend, "a delight- 
ful thought, that there is something perma- 
nent, even though we live in a world so sub- 
ject to change : God is immutable, and so is 
the heaven in which he dwells. Our spirits, 
too, are immortal, and shall soon find their un- 
changing portion there." " On that," she said, 
" I love to meditate. I look backward on a 
long line of passing shadows, but I cannot see 
far forward." Again adverting to her want 
of distinct ideas on the subject of the future 
glory, " A Christian," it was observed, " whether 
he looks backward or forward, finds occasions 
for gratitude, and hope, and love. He can say, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 267 

* Goodness and mercy have followed me all my 
days.'" "Yes," sheadd d, "'and I shall dwell 
in the house of the Lord for ever.' But there 
is occasion for humility. The past might have 
been more diligently improved;" "It would 
be a painful retrospect," said her friend, "were 
it not for the blood of atonement." " It would 
be dreadful ! dreadful !" she exclaimed with 
great emphasis, " but — 

' His Wood for me did once atone, 
And still it pleads before the throne.' " 

It may perhaps be here necessary to state, 
that Mrs. Mortimer was always desirous to hear 
her friends express their sentiments on what- 
ever subjects formed the topics of conversation. 
She would often say to those who visited her, 
" I wish to hear you talk ; that will do me good : 
but my friends must not expect me to talk 
much to them now ; I have not strength to do 
it." Indeed, her debility was in general so 
great, that, unless assisted by the observations 
of others, she could scarcely sustain the effort 
requisite for discourse. Her views were there- 
fore chiefly elicited in replies. But although 
in such a state of feebleness, yet the sight of old 
and dear friends often seemed a cordial to her 
spirit ; and she would generally address to them 
a few impressive words, even when incapable 
of greater effort. 

A few weeks before she was removed, 
a friend remarked, that she had served 
a good Master, from the age of sixteen to 



268 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

eighty, and that He would not now forsake 
her : with a most expressive look and man- 
ner, she said, "Poor service ! unprofitable ser- 
vice ! but I cast myself on the atoning sacri- 
fice, and there I fin-d rest and peace." 

At another time, in an interview with Mrs. 
Wilkinson, she said, " Speak of heaven. O ! 
what a company is there !" To the same 
friend, on her expressing an assurance that she 
would end well, she replied, lifting up her hands 
and eyes, "Yes; and why? Because I have 
an Intercessor, in whom I have power to rest ; 
for remember I have nothing wherein to trust 
but Christ. I have no deservings, no merit." 

Yet, there were peculiar seasons when she 
gave spontaneous utterance to her feelings, and 
expressed the deep and holy thoughts on which 
she pondered when communing with God in 
the interior of her spirit, while abstracted from 
the world without. On one of these occasions, 
after a temporary revival from the affecting 
pressure of disease, she spoke much of her own 
unworthiness, of the sufficiency of the grace 
of Christ, and of the Divine goodness to her in 
the present time of need : wondering tbat she 
was not more drawn out in love to that God 
who had so loved the world as to give his Son 
to be a sacrifice for sin ; on the merit of whose 
death alone she expressed her entire depend- 
ence for salvation. The love of God, the 
glory of the Saviour, and the privileges of be- 
lievers, were the subjects of discourse. "I 
believe," she said, " that I shall behold my 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 269 

Saviour's glory ; but I cannot distinctly realize 
its nature." The passage quoted from the Pro- 
phet Isaiah by St. Paul, she observed, related 
to the privileges of believers in the present life. 
God reveals to them, by his Spirit, things which 
the carnal mind is unable to comprehend ; but 
its meaning might be extended, so as to include 
the higher glories and discoveries of the future 
state. Animated by the subject, she exclaimed, 
with holy fervour, and devout expression both 
of voice and gesture, " And can it be that 
I shall behold that glory?" Being reminded 
of the words of the Redeemer, "Father, I will 
that they whom thou hast given me be with me 
where I am, that they may behold my glory/' 
— her faith embraced them with renewed 
energy ; and, yielding to the ineffable influence 
of Divine love, she was filled with gratitude 
and praise. 

In her silent and solitary hours she meditated 
much on reunion with departed saints. " I 
cannot express," she would sometimes say, 
'* how I exult in the anticipation of soon re- 
joining those friends from whom I have been 
separated here below ; yet it seems strange 
that, although so near to the world of spirits, 
I cannot see thern." It was observed, that 
" that world was now visible to the eye of faith 
alone; but she would soon drop the veil, and 
then faith would be exchanged for sight. Now, 
she was saved by hope, then she would be ad- 
mitted to realize in full fruition her anticipated 
heaven." Holy joy illumined her sweet and 



270 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

venerable, but emaciated countenance, and 
spoke entire assent to what had been advanced. 
Prayer and a solemn benediction, pronounced 
with most impressive emphasis, concluded this 
affecting interview, which seemed preparative 
to the converse of the heirs of heaven. It 
was consecrated by the presence of the Sa- 
viour; doubtless by that of his angelic minis- 
tries ; and why not also by that of glorified 
and sainted friends 1 How hallowed are such 
scenes ! Disease may weigh down the corrup- 
tible frame of the dying Christian ; and, like 
a haze in the lower atmosphere, obscure the 
beams of the intellectual sun : but the light of 
heaven breaks throuoh the dimness, and reveals 
visions of glory, even amidst the desolations of 
the valley of the shadow of death. 

Increasing weakness, and occasionally more 
of positive suffering, filled up the measure of that 
cup of mortal sorrow which, by the wisdom of 
her heavenly Father, it was ordained that she 
should drink. Like her Divine Master, she 
was ever found prepared to say, " Thy will 
be done." A meek, filial, and submissive cha- 
racter was deeply stamped upon her spirit ; and 
every fresh ingredient, added to the bitter and 
unpalatable draught, she patiently accepted, as 
the wise appointment of paternal love. When 
the mandate of dismission should arrive, 
she was prepared to welcome it ; but till her 
summons came, she was content to suffer, as 
under other circumstances she had sought to 
do, the will of God. About a month before her 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 271 

death, she requested to receive the ordinance 
of the Lord's Sapper, which was solemnly ad- 
ministered to her by her son, the Rev. Thomas 
Mortimer, B. D. Her family and two friends 
were admitted to join with her on this interest- 
ing occasion. It was a prelude to tasting of the 
" new wine " at the richer banquet prepared for 
saints in heaven. 

On Saturday, the 4th of April, to a friend who 
inquired how she was, she replied that she felt 
inexpressible weakness, as well as considerable 
pain : "Bat," she added " it is all as my Lord 
pleases : and he gives me patience to await 
his will." She was unable to converse at great- 
er length ; but, on parting, pronounced her 
solemn blessing on her friend ; as on that day, 
and the following, which was the Sabbath, she 
also did on some of the younger members of 
her family, to whom she gave her last impress- 
ive counsel with calm benignity and tender 
love. On Monday she was seized with an op- 
pressive stupor, from which she only partially 
recovered ; and though she occasionally recog- 
nized friends around her, yet the vital princi- 
ple was so far exhausted as to have nearly sunk 
below the power of speech. 

On the 9th of April, the day of her depar- 
ture, she lay as in a tranquil sleep. Toward 
evening her respiration became short and quick, 
till about seven o'clock ; when, almost imper- 
ceptibly, she breathed her last. The shaft of 
death was pointless : his approach was without 
terror, and his commission, to all appearance, 



272 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

executed without pain. Neither groan nor 
struggle indicated suffering, while the spirit took 
its flight from the terrestrial, shattered taberna- 
cle to the felicities and joys of paradise. Her 
end was perfect peace. She was interred in the 
burying ground of the City-Road chapel, on 
Thursday, April 16th ; and the solemn event 
was improved by Dr. Bunting, in a funeral ser- 
mon, on the 26th of the same month. 



The following beautiful sketch of Mrs. Mor- 
timer in old age, from the pen of her interest- 
ing friend, Mrs. D. Whitmore, is communicated 
by Mrs. Reynolds : — 

"It was my privilege, in the spring of 1831, 
to spend three weeks in the house with dear 
Mrs. Mortimer. The bodily frame was now 
evidently sinking under the weight of years ; 
but the mind was then seemingly unimpaired, 
except that the weakness of the frame prevent- 
ed that animation which had previously been 
so marked a feature in her character. She 
declined all general society, and conversed 
much less, even with her friends ; but the same 
occasional spark of intelligence lighted up her 
countenance, and the same smile of benevolence 
cast its mild lustre over it. She took great 
pleasure in hearing w T hat was read to her, and 
in the discussions which often arose in conse- 
quence ; and though her own remarks were 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 273 

comparatively few, she confirmed or rectified 
the opinions of others by her enlightened judg- 
ment. Never was decay more pleasingly pre- 
sented — in a manner, which not only brought 
with it no humiliating appearance, but had 
even a grace that rendered it attractive. Her 
spare and delicate form moved so lightly, that 
you hardly heard her tread ; and I often felt 
that it was like something scarcely earthly 
moving around me. Nothing querulous, nothing 
complaining, ever escaped her lips ; no trans- 
gression of Solomon's rule, ; Say not that the 
former days were better.' Incapable, from 
weakness of sight, of most employments, she 
would, to fill up her time, cheerfully fold papers 
for lighting ; and this she did in so orderly and 
arranged a manner, that we used laughingly 
to call it ' her manufacture.' How often, while 
with her, during this happy and instructive 
period, did I think of what she had said a few 
years before, — i I feel I must pray for grace to 
grow old !' And assuredly her prayer has been 
heard. A near relative of mine, of uncommon 
refinement, and sensibility almost to excess, 
saw her at this time, and said, 'I have often 
seen old age respectable and estimable, but sel- 
dom interesting : Mrs. Mortimer's is interest- 
ing.' Mrs. Mortimer was much by herself: 
we never saw her till the middle of the day. 
She told me that she always read the Psalms 
and Lessons before she left her room ; adding, 
1 It is too large a portion of Scripture for such 
a purpose, but we may select parts of it.' This 
18 



274 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

reminds me of dear Mrs. Fletcher, who, in her 
latter years, said in her meeting, * I am now 
obliged to take a whole chapter for your in- 
struction ; formerly a few verses were sufficient 
for me, but my mind will not now dwell so long 
upon one subject only.' — After this visit, I 
never again saw this dear and honoured friend. 
I now rejoice at that which often seemed to 
me a privation ; as the recollection of her 
occurs in a mellowed, sober form, deprived in- 
deed of its more brilliant attractions, but 
scarcely less beautiful in the mild decay of the 
Christian approaching the tomb, where all that 
is corruptible shall be left, and what was 
' mortal shall put on immortality.' Few have 
ever exhibited more perfectly the renewal, by 
the Spirit, of the image of God. She had been 
indeed born again from above. Let us now 
rejoice, that this child of God, beholding her 
Saviour as he is, is more like him ; and, above 
all, let us who have received the talent of 
knowing her, follow her steps, and, through 
faith and patience, rejoin her in the glorious 
circle who are now casting their crowns before 
the throne.'- 



The chief circumstances in the life of this 
interesting and eminent Christian, have now 
passed successively in review : her character, 
with the principles upon which it w r as formed, 
has been examined ; and the force and efficien- 
cy of those principles have been tasted, through 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 275 

a protracted coarse of more than fourscore 
years. As a beautiful example of their power 
to change, renew, iind elevate man's fallen 
nature, to fit him for fulfilling the high pur- 
poses of his existence in the present life, and 
to prepare him for the life to come, it is pre- 
sumed she may now be happily adduced. Her 
Christianity was truly valuable, both to herself 
and others : it conferred advantages which, 
conscientiously and diligently used, enlarged 
her sphere of influence, and raised her to a 
station in society which she otherwise would 
not have occupied. In the hand of the indus- 
trious servant, the one talent became two, and 
the two five. Usefulness and influence acted 
and reacted on each other ; her character ac- 
quired consolidation ; and efficiency, moral, 
practical, and intellectual, was the important 
and desirable result. 

The structure of Mrs, Mortimer's mind ap- 
pears to have been naturally sound. Judgment, 
discretion, prudence, consideration, may be 
regarded as its component elements. But it 
was the introduction of a higher principle that 
gave direction to these faculties, that stimulat- 
ed and expanded her whole intellectual and 
moral nature, and imparted to her life its useful, 
exemplary, and energetic character. That 
principle was religion. In early youth it took 
possession of her heart, subdued its passions, 
regulated its desires, and fixed its tender, warm, 
and unsophisticated love on things important, 
holy, and sublime. Hence life assumed a dif- 



£76 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

ferent form and colour : years that would have 
rolled away in ordinary and contracted occu- 
pations, were devoted to engagements of a 
higher order; and employed not for secular 
and personal advantage merely, but directed to 
promote the highest interests of her species, 
her own salvation, and the glory of her God. 

Mrs. Mortimer's religion, as the preceding 
pages have evinced, was truly spiritual : it was 
a "life hid with Christ in God." The facul- 
ties of her interior nature had been quickened 
into vigorous exercise ; and her perceptions 
realized existences and operations which reve- 
lation only renders sensible to the illumined 
eye of faith. As a citizen of the Jerusalem 
above, she held communion, not only with the 
ever blessed Trinity, but with " the whole 
family" of God " in heaven and earth." Nor 
was she unaware of the existence, or the stra- 
tagems, of that malignant, subtle, and powerful 
adversary who seeks the overthrow of human 
souls. An elevated seriousness of spirit was 
the result of these unworldly views ; and a de- 
meanour, eminently devotional, tended to im- 
press on others the same consciousness of the 
reality and nearness of those spiritual and un- 
seen objects with which she herself appeared 
to be so conversant. Great simplicity, humili- 
ty, and heavenly-mindedness, were the cha- 
racteristics of a profound and comprehensive 
piety, which, by a transition that appeared 
instinctive, passed from earthly cares, perplexi- 
ties, and sorrows, to the contemplation of a 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 277 

state of permanent and perfect blessedness be- 
yond. 

In cjmmon with her revered father in the 
Gospel, Mr. Wesley, Mrs. Mortimer felt a lively 
interest in the special observance of that day 
which, by the Church of England, is set apart 
for solemn reminiscence of" the dead in Christ." 
it was her practice, on All Saints' Day, to read 
the beautiful Collect, and the portions of Scrip- 
ture, appointed in the Liturgy to be used on 
that occasion. She was accustomed also to 
enumerate, at these seasons, the bereavements 
she had suffered through the past year ; — or 
rather the additions that had been made to the 
heavenly family, from the circle of her friends, 
during that period ; and, as her friendships 
were all formed in reference to eternity, she 
rejoiced in hope of that glorious day when the 
whole body of Christ, in ineffable association 
with him, their living Head, shall find that 
perfect consummation of joy and felicity in his 
presence " which he has prepared for them 
that" unfeignedly "love him." 

Yet, while devout in spirit, she was eminent- 
ly practical ; and, with singular propriety and 
wisdom, adapted her conversation to the cir- 
cumstances of her friends. To the young 
especially she sought to recommend religion ; 
and, by mild and persuasive invitations, to in- 
duce them, at whatever cost or sacrifice, to 
choose the better part, As her connections 
were extensive, her influence in this respect 
was great ; and when, by the infirmity of years 8 



278 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER* 



excluded from more active service, she thus 
occupied a post in which the piety and wis- 
dom of her counsels received increasing sanc- 
tion from her weight of character. 

Her friendships were among the special 
blessings of her life : they were the retributions 
of a gracious Providence, for sacrifices made 
in early youth. In the foregoing pages have 
been given examples of the beautiful and edi- 
fying combination of talent, piety, and pure 
affection, formed by her extensive correspond- 
ence with persons of no ordinary mind. Her 
friendship with the venerable Wesley was the 
leading star to future excellence and elevation. 
With the devoted Fletchers she breathed an 
element of sainted and seraphic ardour. By 
Lady Maxwell, lofty, solemn, spiritual, mys- 
terious, she was led to high contemplative 
religious exercises ; — while humble, gentle Lady 
Mary Fitzgerald, by her affectionate and pious 
intercourse, soothed and refreshed the tender- 
est feelings of her heart. The masculine, 
discriminating, practical, yet speculative, mind 
of Mrs. Bates supplied a stirring, vivid, stimu- 
lating impulse to the understanding;- — in con- 
nection with which she had the benefit of the 
chastened, touching, Christian sentiment of 
Mrs. Whitmore, and of the manly yet exalted 
piety of Mr. Pearson. These, and the many 
others who have been before specified, form 
such a cluster of invaluable names, as few can 
number in their list of friends. 

Of the estimation in which Mrs. Mortimer 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 279 

was held by this interesting circle, and of the 
confidence they reposed in her, their corres- 
pondence affords sufficient proof; and the in- 
fluence acquired in directions so various, cement- 
ed and matured, in every instance, by increas- 
ing years, affords delightful indication of the 
moral power of gentle and persuasive goodness, 
to attract affection, and conciliate respect and 
love. Thus honoured and esteemed, while 
her attachments, formed on permanent and 
holy principles, were calculated to survive the 
changes of mortality, she never, by unkind, and 
cold, and vacillating conduct, lost her friends. 
Candour, simplicity, and frankness, marked her 
general intercourse ; gentleness and dignity 
were combined in her demeanour ; while devo- 
tion, which was the habit of her mind, had cast 
her very countenance into a heavenly mould. 
A benign expression, not unlike that which 
distinguished the revered and honoured patron 
of her early life, and which might, possibly, 
have been in part acquired insensibly from him, 
made her an object of regard and interest (al- 
though apparelled in the plainest style) wherever 
she appeared. She belonged evidently to no 
ordinary class of persons ; ther3 was a sanctity 
in her aspect and deportment, an ethereal bear- 
ing, that distinguished her from others, as a 
being of a holier and superior kind. In her 
conversation, piety, humility, a kind regard for 
others, and general good sense and wisdom, 
formed the pure, benevolent, and leading ele- 
ments. While possessing physical and intel- 



280 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

lectual power, she much enjoyed society ; and 
sought to make the interviews of Christian 
friends at once instructive and delightful, by 
starting seasonable and interesting topics of 
discourse, which she well knew could be eluci- 
dated by some portion of her company, from 
whom the rest would gladly learn. Thus giv- 
ing to the hours of social intercourse, a rational 
and elevated character, she made necessary 
recreation at once a relaxation and refreshment ; 
alike conducive to invigorate the natural and 
intellectual powers ; — an object most desirable, 
yet often truly difficult to be attained. 

Her sympathy with suffering friends has been 
already manifest. Her counsels, prayers, and 
enorts, were continually offered to alleviate or 
remove distress : nor, while her ear received the 
tale of sorrow, was confidence loquaciously or 
inconsiderately betrayed. The poor, the sick, 
and the afflicted, were objects of her kind soli- 
citude : few, perhaps, have been so often seen 
as ministering angels in the chamber of afflic- 
tion; speaking words of comfort to the sorrow- 
ful, the agonized, the dying, or commending 
them in solemn and believing supplication to 
the care and mercy of a present God. By 
many a sainted spirit, whom she has assisted 
to surmount the sorrows of mortality, she has 
no doubt been welcomed to the regions of eter- 
nal rest. 

In the prosperity of the Redeemer's kingdom 
she felt a lively interest. For the Church and 
for its ministers, her prayers incessantly as- 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 281 

cended to the throne of the Most High. For 
those to whom she was united in the fellowship 
of Christ, she felt a love which neither the in- 
firmities of age, nor the exhausting languors of 
disease, could quench. A few months before 
her death, conversing on this subject with a 
friend, she said, " I find intercession a very in- 
teresting engagement : it seems the onlv way 
in which I can now promote the benefit of 
others, or the glory of my Saviour ; but this is 
still open to me; and I feel it profitable and 
pleasant to be so employed. " 

As a member of the Wesleyan Methodist So- 
ciety, she was one of its brightest and most 
consistent ornaments ; and justified through life 
the regard with which she had been honoured 
by its venerable and illustrious founder. In 
those departments of usefulness which the sys- 
tem so extensively presents, she was ever ready 
to occupy her proper sphere; which she did, 
not only with unshrinking fidelity, but with 
great success. Her knowledge and experience 
of Divine truth, together with the liveliness, 
suavity, and simplicity of her manner, gave her 
great spiritual influence, and access to many 
hearts. In charities, and various schemes of 
secular benevolence, she was active, zealous, 
and discriminating, not easily deceived by hy- 
pocritical pretenders, nor restrained, on just 
occasions, from administering reproof. 

As a professor of the religion of the heart, 
Mrs. Mortimer gave proof that spirituality is 
not necessarily enthusiastic or fanatical ; but 



282 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

that there is a real, a delightful, a transforming 
intercourse to which the human spirit is admit- 
ted with the ever blessed God. The deep and 
mystic promises of the Redeemer, on the sub- 
ject of the union of believers with himself, have 
their fulfilment in some happy hearts; — she 
embraced them thankfully, and waited for their 
full accomplishment. She loved the Saviour, 
and yielded to him a willing homage : to her, 
therefore, he manifested himself as he does not 
unto the world. 

To behold the promise of the vernal blossom 
realized in the luxuriant fruits of summer, and 
the maturity of the autumnal harvest, is a sight 
on which the eye reposes with delight and gra- 
titude. The Christian, who, in life's meridian, 
fulfils the bright anticipations of his early piety, 
and, as his sun declines, irradiates the horizon 
with his rich and golden splendours, is an ob- 
ject of still deeper admiration, and a subject 
of more lofty and sublime thanksgiving to the 
Fount of good. To God alike belongs the glory, 
whether in the realms of nature or of grace he 
manifests his wisdom, love, and might. 

Christianity is a system not only of truth, 
but of power. To this, facts in numberless 
instances, from its first promulgation to the 
present hour, bear indubitable testimony ; nor 
will it now be questioned, but that the honoured 
individual whose course has just been traced 
affords an additional demonstration of the effi- 
ciency with which it operates in the accom- 
plishment of its important end. The conclusion, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 283 

then, is manifest; — the Gospel is, in its origin 
and in its authority, Divine. With this prin- 
ciple, as its moral, the present work commenced : 
the progress of the volume has, it is presumed, 
sustained the premises; and the deduction to 
be fairly drawn, is the impressive lesson, that 
a system so adapted to the wants and miseries 
of fallen human nature, is a boon of uncom- 
puted value, alike beneficent and energetic in 
its agency. What do its mercy and its power 
effect? What, in the present instance, did that 
love and power accomplish? In every case it 
purifies, exalts, and cheers defiled, degraded, 
miserable man. In this, its energy embraced 
its object in a season of peculiar interest and 
importance, and introduced a spring into the 
moral constitution which gave impulse to each 
faculty, and an expansion to the spirit that 
changed the character and form of life. 

Neither for the world, nor for its literature, 
does Christian biography possess a charm. But 
to the holy and illuminated mind, there is no 
engagement more instructive or delightful, than 
to mark the period when the first spark of 
Divine light is struck into a human spirit ; and 
to trace its progress as it proceeds to dissipate 
those clouds of error and of sin, which gather 
round the chaos of the fallen soul. The smile 
of superciliousness may mark the contempt of 
the worldling; but angels look down with in. 
tense interest on those who have entered the 
lists, and are strenuously pursuing the career 
of immortality. The exploits of heroes and 



234 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

potentates may engage the breathless attention 
of the lovers of this world's greatness ; political 
schemes and national revolutions may engross 
their interests and speculations ; but He, who 
sees in every regenerated spirit the travail of 
his own soul, regards with infinitely greater 
complacency the arduous and persevering ef- 
forts of one immortal being, to accomplish the 
supreme purpose for which life was given. The 
sympathies of the Divine Redeemer are with 
him who, through the intricacies, toils, and con- 
flicts of this probationary state, urges his course 
with noble intrepidity; achieving victories in 
succession over subtle, dark, malignant ene- 
mies; bearing meekly various and accumu- 
lated trials ; consecrating every energy of na- 
ture and of grace to the sublimest objects ; 
renouncing both the world and self; and press- 
ing onward to the attainment of an everlasting 
crown. If, then, the Mediator, and the minis- 
tries of his invisible and eternal kingdom, regard 
with highest interest the Christian in his course 
of discipline and duty; can those who have the 
same perilous path to tread, the same obstacles 
to surmount, the same enemies to overcome, 
and the same victories to achieve, be uncon- 
cerned to learn, from those who have preceded 
them, the lessons which experience teaches to 
thoughtful and reflecting minds? 

The shades of evening will fall shortly upon 
those who now, for a season, pour their mingled 
tears into the urn of friendship ; yet, beyond 
those shadows, faith anticipates the dawn of 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 285 

cloudless glory ; and walks, in inseparable com- 
panionship, beside the stream of life, with those 
who have already tasted of the fruits of immor- 
tality. Till that momentous consummation, 
ye hallowed and triumphant spirits, who wear 
your crowns, and wave your palms of victory, 
" Hail ! a^d Farewell !" 



THE BEATIFIC VISION. 

" The nations of them that are saved shall walk in the light 
of it," Rev. xxi, 24. 

" Not the glitter and glory ; not the diamond and topaz • no, 
it is God: he is all and in all." — Richard Watson. 

'•Walk in that light !"— O !' who are they 
Whose feet shall tread that shining way ? 
Whose sight, undazzled, shall behold 
That pavement of transparent gold? 
By angels welcomed, who, O ! w T ho 
Shall pass those pearly portals through, 
And brighten in the glorious blaze 
Of that gemm'd city's sparkling rays? 

There walk the saved : but not in light 
Of suns in seven-fold lustre bright; 
Nor peerless moonbeams' silent sheen, 
Reposing, soft, on velvet green : 
No ! nor where hallow'd radiance spreads, 
From golden lamps, o'er sainted heads, 
Within the temple ceaseless found, 
While walk the hours their silent round. 

There walk the saved : yes ! they who bore, 
While traversing life's stormy shore, 
Through tears and blood, the hallow'd cross; 
Who, purged from earth's terrestrial dross, 
Received the Saviour's form impress'd, 
Whose signet, on each hallow'd breast 
Enstamp'd the mystic name, unknown 
To all but those around the throne : 



286 MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 

Who, calm 'midst earth's tumultuous strife, 
Drew from himself that inward life 
Which spirits breathe, from sense apart ; 
While, deep in each devoted heart, 
The formless glory dwelt serene, 
Of old, in cherub splendour seen, 
Prelude of bliss ressrved above, 
In perfect light, for perfect love. 

Nov/, all is heaven! no temple there 
Unfolds its gates ; no voice of prayer 
From that bright multitude ascends; 
But holy rapture, reverent, bends 
Before the mediatorial throne ; 
Before the Lamb ! whose beams alone 
Irradiate that eternal sky ; 
The bursting Blaze of Deity ! 



Soft is the voice of golden lutes ; 
Soft bloom heaven's fair ambrosial fruits ; 
Bright beams the dazzling lustre shed 
From radiant gems in order spread, 
From golden streets, from emerald floors, 
From crystal floods, and pearly doors, 
From rainbow tints, from angels' wings, 
And all unutter'd glorious things. 

Yet, not that city's dazzling glow, 
Nor limpid waters' crystal flow, 
Nor dulcet harmony, that springs 
From golden lyres, nor angels' wings, 
Though glistening with intensest dyes, 
Reflected from immortal skies, 
Completes the palmy bliss of those 
On whom heaven's pearly portals close. 

No ! 'tis, with unfilm'd eyes, to see 
The once incarnate Deity, 
Who still, in lamb-like meekness, bears 
Imprinted deep, those glorious scars, 



MEMOIR OF MRS. MORTIMER. 287 

Whence issued wide that crimson flow 
In which their robes were wash'd below, 
Which bought that crown, whose splendour bright 
Now spheres them in a world of light ! 

No ! 'tis not all that heaven can show 
Of great, or fair, un glimpsed below ; 
Nor converse deep with spirits high, 
Who saw those vollied lightnings fly 
Which scathed their bright compeers in bliss 
And hurl'd them down to hell's abyss ; 
Who mark'd creation rise sublime, 
And hymn'd the early birth of time : 

No ! not with minds like these to blend, 
And feel each angel-form a friend; 
But God, their fount, to know and see ; 
From all-pervading Deity 
To catch the nearer burst of light ; 
To gain the beatific sight ; 
Entranced in glory's peerless blaze, 
Conform'd to him, on him to gaze. 



THE END. 



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